Catholic identity at Catholic colleges is complicated

Catholic identity at Catholic colleges is complicated: Distinctly Catholic: There was nothing in the Land O'Lakes document that required or even warranted a loss of Catholic identity, but many schools saw precisely such a loss.

MGB:_Catholic colleges in the sixties and seventies were like many schools in their opposition to the Viet Nam war and their support of civil rights. Even Loras College in Dubuque, Iowa had civil rights protests and sit-ins. Is that a Catholic thing to do? Of course. Also a Christian thing to do. Was there a huge pro-life pressence? Not really. Central America attracted as much or more attention when I was a student in the early 80s.

I found the chapel to be well used and there were plenty of students who never went to Mass, whether it was because their parents had stopped at home or they were tasting freedom, I cannot say.

What still distinguishers Catholic schools are parietals. There were women’s and men’s floor or single sex dorms, sign-ins after 10 and guests were out by 2. While the rules agaisnt sexual activity were never enforced, they were still on the books. In graduate school, at American, there were no such rules and floors were co-ed. As for the student’s themselves, there was no marked difference in chastisty in either university (or Catholic U., where my R.A.’s girlfriend slept over most nights). Any ”Catholic identity” in this area was for show. I suspect it always has been. Prior generations simply had to be more creative in their fornicating.