Message from St . Francis College ’ s 19th President
President Miguel Martinez-Saenz greets Rocky along with incoming freshmen and transfer students at Terrier Tuesday on September 5 .
To say that I feel honored and humbled to have been selected as the 19th President of St . Francis College would understate the emotions I feel at this time . My joining the St . Francis College community , and the Brooklyn community , has been a whirlwind of experiences including , most notably , a newfound appreciation for the way hospitality can be made manifest in our lives . My family ( Julie , Caterina , Joaquin-and our two dogs : Charlotte and Dallas ) has experienced more warmth and we have received more thoughtful attention and care than we could have ever imagined . For that we will be eternally grateful .
There is little doubt that I have big shoes to fill and I have a legacy to uphold , preserve and enhance . My deep devotion to the mission of St . Francis College will , I hope , be obvious to all those who I am fortunate enough to encounter on our journey .
Let us continue to embrace the idea fully that a Catholic College like St . Francis College , a college committed to keeping the existential questions front and center , is in a good position to help build a strong public imagination among members of the community by promoting dialogue about things that matter ; also , it is critical that each of us strives to enact our espoused commitments in ways that are “ perceptibly present and effectively operative .” While a commitment to service is absolutely critical and fundamental , so too is a concern with ultimate questions , both theological and philosophical .
In God , Philosophy , Universities : A Selective History of the Catholic Philosophical Tradition , Alasdair MacIntyre writes : “ Undergraduate education has become largely a prologue to specialization and professionalization … by and large a place in which certain questions go unasked or rather , if asked , it is only by individuals and in settings such that as few as possible hear them being asked .” St . Francis College should continue striving to buck this tendency by first and foremost making plain that an education rooted in the Franciscan tradition requires all members of the community to reflect critically and contemplate morally and deliberately in a manner that illustrates a commitment to social justice and in a manner that takes seriously Matthew 25:31-46 .
It ’ s very easy for us to say things . It ’ s much more difficult for us to be living examples of our values . We must learn to live in a complex and ever-changing world , endeavoring to understand more fully the pressing issues of our day and we must make a concerted effort to be living examples of mercy , compassion and hospitality . Of significance , we should aspire to remain open to learning from our neighbors , understanding all the while that our humanity binds us in irrevocable ways ; mysterious ways perhaps , but ways that demand of us that we respect the dignity and worth of each being . We must push ourselves and our neighbors in ways that enable each of us to accept the fact that the world is messy , that ethical judgments are conflict-ridden , that we , as imperfect vessels in an imperfect society will continue to struggle to grasp our purpose , our vocation , and our place in the world . And , we can only expect to be beacons of hope if we choose to live in community with others .
I have a firm belief that we must always attempt to be models of what it means to be a life-long learner , a learner who never arrives . A learner who dwells uncomfortably but willingly in the contingent , imperfect and transitory , yet embraces life with zeal and with an unflinching commitment to self-interrogation and to respect and care of “ the other .” We must enact this daily in our lives and in our communities . And , we must invite others to join us .
In Peace and Friendship ,
Dr . Miguel Martinez-Saenz President
ST . FRANCIS COLLEGE TERRIER | FALL 2017 | VOLUME 81 , NUMBER 1 1