(Remarks as prepared)
Thank you Fr. Bob Dowd, John Veihmeyer, and the exceptionally welcoming community of the University of Notre Dame. Congratulations Class of 2025 on this momentous milestone in your lives.
I have a confession to make. This is my very first visit to this hallowed place. And I am speaking specifically of this magnificent college football cathedral. Unlike my husband, I was not born a Notre Dame football fan. But after marrying up, and being introduced to the Fighting Irish, I found myself cheering wildly last year during your dramatic run to the national title game. As I watched that first College Football Playoff game ever played on a college campus, I thought of just how spectacularly joyous that night must have been for those of you in the student section. Freezing, but joyous.
You experienced communal celebration alongside your closest friends in this supportive, loving community that you’ve had the privilege of being a part of for the past four years. It is how I imagine people felt standing in St Peter’s Square ten days ago as the entire world learned of our new pope. Communion. Joy. A sense of belonging. Being present in the moment. Hopeful. As you venture forth from this beautiful campus today, I urge you to seek out, as frequently as you can, more moments of authentic human connection. Be present. Be generous. Be joyful. Be hopeful.
You are graduating into a world filled with forces that can divide and isolate you if you allow them to do so — from rising political polarization to rapid technological advancements. It has never been easier to live a solitary life. But there is an antidote to the epidemic of isolation and loneliness. There is a prophylactic against the temptation to despair.
Our beloved Pope Francis gave us a term for this: Build a culture of encounter and accompaniment. The more open your eyes and your hearts are to others and their experiences, the more aware you will be of their humanity, their joy and their suffering, and how you can be a beneficial presence to them, a reason for their hope.
Many of you will go on to professional careers explicitly oriented to helping others — like the distinguished careers of Admiral Grady, Father Bob, the luminaries receiving honorary doctorates today, and your beloved professors. But you don’t need to be an admiral or a Holy Cross priest, a luminary or a professor to live a life of generosity and service; all of us can.
Generosity is humankind’s birthright. We can be generous by presuming goodness in others, by extending the benefit of the doubt. We can be supportive colleagues in the workplace. We can be generous listeners. A source of love, solace, encouragement, and entertainment for our family and friends. We can take unselfish delight in the good fortune of others. We can welcome those seeking refuge. We can find ways to be of service to those struggling most in our communities. We can volunteer, offering the most valuable gift we have, our time and attention. Last year alone more than 215,000 people volunteered at Catholic Charities agencies in all 50 states, five US territories, and the District of Columbia.
Your lives are already oriented in this direction, having been shaped by the Holy Cross charism at this world class university, that calls you to be a force for good in the world. Service imbues our lives with purpose and meaning. It is paradoxical. Those who genuinely give of themselves to help others, especially to help those most in need of mercy, always say the same thing: “I received far more than I gave.”
Will every second of your life be as euphoric as the moment Jeremiyah Love turned the corner and ran 98 yards for a touchdown on that cold December night inside this stadium? I wish.
But I can promise you this: the more you focus on forging real human connections, on serving others, on finding ways to show up, to be present and generous, the more consistently fulfilling and joyful your life will be.
And don’t just take my word for it. Look at the way your own moral heroes live their lives. And consider this observation from our new pope, installed in Rome on this very day. Pope Leo XIV said, “I’m so convinced that if we open our lives and our hearts to serve others, we – indeed like the Gospel says – receive a hundredfold in this life.”
Members of the Class of 2025, that is my wish for you in your lives.
Thank you, Notre Dame, for including me in your illustrious Laetare Medal tradition and history and for shining a spotlight on the compassionate, Christ-like work of the Catholic Charities family in this moment, when poor and vulnerable people so deeply need our help and our love. Congratulations again to the class of 2025! Good luck, and Go Irish!
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