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they seek to neutralize right and
wrong. The Dominicans are one of
those forces in our world that stand
ready to resist those pressures. They
continue to fight for what is right. The
wonderful truth about the friars is
their consistent teaching of theology
and philosophy.
Today’s Dominican friar, aside
from the watch he is wearing, would
be hard to distinguish from a friar
of four hundred years ago. Too
many religious congregations have
confronted a crisis and gone out of
existence. However, the Dominicans
continue with their mission of trying to
right the wrongs, whether the heresies
of the 1300’s or those of today:
abortion, mercy killings, euthanasia, or
physician assisted suicide.
My newfound appreciation for the
friars came into being at a meeting
in Boston where I heard a young friar
and Providence College professor
describe his encounter with Christ.
While studying microbiology at
MIT and well before any thought
of becoming a priest, Fr. Nicanor
Austriaco, O.P., described a Friday
afternoon when he met Jesus.
We’ve all heard about someone who
has encountered Jesus, but this man
subsequently dedicated his entire
life to Him. Hearing that personal
testament, I came to appreciate how
each student brother’s vocation is
a gift that will only bear fruit if we
continue to support those engaged
in assisting and developing those
vocations at the novitiate and the
Dominican House of Studies.
I only wish I had been a better
student and taken more time to fully
appreciate the dedication, talent,
and training of the friars when I was
there. Years later, I came to esteem
one friar in particular, Fr. Paul James,
O.P. He grew up in Newport, RI, and
was the unofficial liaison between
Providence College and Salve Regina
College in Newport. In those days,
Providence College was all men and
Salve Regina was an all girls’ school.
He “suggested” that if I was going
home the coming weekend, I should
make a cameo appearance at a mixer
dance. It was at that dance that I met
Susan, who later became my wife.
That dance fifty-seven years ago was
providential. It also happened that
the chaplain at Salve Regina was a
Dominican from Providence College,
Fr. Irving Georges, O.P., a philosophy
teacher, and one of Susan’s favorites.
I believe that Providence College is
where many "fruits" of the Dominican
charism are harvested, but that it
is at the House of Studies where
they are grown!
Fr. James Cuddy, O.P., with
Providence College students
Photo Credit: Providence College
4 | TheTrumpet
I am confident that the Thomistic
formation I am receiving now in my
studies helps me tremendously in my
ministry as a Dominican friar. Earlier
this year I was asked to give a talk
at St. Vincent Ferrer Priory in New
York City. I followed Kathryn Jean
Lopez, the Editor-at-Large of the
National Review Online who gave a
presentation on the state of religion
in American culture.
I told this gathering of friends how
the Dominican friars were invited to
speak at different DC universities,
the Annapolis Naval Academy, and
various collegiate atheist groups.
The students’ initial questions dealt
with current moral or social issues
that are standard in the medi