TheTrumpet
Director’s Letter
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For God and Country
A Quarterly
publication of
the Dominican
Foundation
Friars Reach Out to Atheists at
Annapolis Naval Academy
Dominican Friars
Province of St. Joseph
Provincial
Fr. Brian Mulcahy, O.P.
Executive Director
Fr. Kevin Gabriel Gillen, O.P.
Director/COO
John Lacorazza
Planned Giving
Diana Kilarjian
Marketing/IT
Barry Clark
Editor
George Goss
Graphic Designer
Roland Lizares
dominicanfriars.org
facebook.com/dominican.friars
youtube.com/DHSpriory
BlackFriars Media App
2 | TheTrumpet
Fr. Gabriel Gillen, O.P. and U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia.
D
ear Friends,
Back in October I wrote a
letter to Justice Antonin
Scalia of the Supreme Court briefly
explaining to him who we are and
inviting him to a dinner with the
Dominican friars. A week later
he wrote back, “There was no
need to fill me in on the identity
of the Blackfriars. The Dominicans
have been, and remain, a great order.
The Church would not be the same
without them. Which is prologue
to saying that I will be happy to
attend the dinner.”
Father Romanus Cessario, O.P.,
gave a brief talk on Saint Thomas
Aquinas and Law, and Justice Scalia
followed with a response. It was a
delightful evening, which displayed
the unique form of Dominican
preaching that has existed for
nearly 800 years. Dominicans sat
at the table with judges, lawyers,
business leaders, and a Supreme
Court Justice for an informal yet
learned discussion.
As you will see from this publication,
the Dominican form, grounded in the
teaching of Saint Thomas Aquinas,
offers a coherent response to the
particular and fundamental questions
of our time, and it is able to speak to
a wide range of people, from atheists
on college campuses to lawyers
on Capitol Hill.
I am truly thankful to you for
making all of this possible. It is
because of friends like you that we
are able to train so many young
friars in the teaching of Saint Thomas
Aquinas. It is because of you that
college students across the country
are able to encounter Dominican
preaching and learn its relevance;
and it is through your generosity that
we are able to evangelize through
media and the arts. The Order of
Preachers would not be able to carry
on its mission without you.
Yours in Christ,
Fr. Gabriel Gillen, O.P.
Dominican Foundation • Dominican Friars • Province of Saint Joseph
Y
ou might think the
U.S. Naval Academy
Freethinkers and Atheists
(N.A.F.A.) society is an
unlikely place to find a handful of
Dominican friars. Yet, as an initiative
undertaken during the Year of Faith,
a committee of student brothers
offered to appear at meetings of
every university society of atheists
in the D.C. area. Thanks to N.A.F.A.
accepting the proposal, I was
privileged to accompany Brothers
Bonaventure Chapman, O.P.,
and Leo Camurati, O.P., for one
such discussion.
When we stepped into room 110
(a stark, sizable lecture hall) at 19:00
hours, I quickly got the impression
that the twenty or so midshipmen
already assembled were expecting
something completely different.
Perhaps they anticipated an older
priest or maybe our Dominican
habits seemed daunting. Nonetheless,
we quick