Popular comedian Stephen Colbert offered the commencement address at Northwestern University this weekend, telling the graduating seniors to follow their dreams...unless their dreams are "stupid." Below, Rozann Carter takes a closer look at what that characterization implies.
Stephen Colbert, host of Comedy Central’s “Colbert Report” and graduate of Northwestern University, returned to his Alma Mater this past Saturday to deliver the commencement address to NWU’s graduating seniors. Being an Evanston resident, I can attest to the fact that the aura about the town the following morning was characterized by animated chatter and glowing praise for Colbert’s message and style. People interrupted one another to share their most memorable quips and talk about the applicable quality of Colbert’s hilarity-veiled message. Apparently (and purposefully), his comedic routine provided an accessible vehicle for a pithy message to this receptive audience. (Good news for Catholics: a parallel style of “Cloak and Dagger Catechesis,” identified and analyzed as such by writer Matt Emerson in a recent article on Washington Post, has been used on numerous occasions to display Colbert’s Catholic identity, raising meaningful questions and dropping Catholic intrigue into what might otherwise be considered hostile territory.)
One particularly popular zinger offered by Colbert on Saturday (and discussed in Evanston’s coffee shops on Sunday) was the following: “You have been told to follow your dreams,” he said. “But what if it’s a stupid dream? Thankfully, dreams can change. If we'd all be stuck with our first dream, the world would be overrun with cowboys and princesses."...
Father Barron and the
Catholicism film crew are currently in Florence, Italy, on their final filming excursion for the
Catholicism series.
In addition to visiting the Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore (also known as the "Duomo") and the Uffizi Gallery, which boasts of masterpieces from the great Renaissance painters Michaelangelo, Da Vinci, Caravaggio, Botticelli, and countless others, Father Barron and the team visited the birthplace of one of Christianity's greatest poets, Dante Alighieri.
Dante was born in Florence and lived from 1265-1321. His great poem, the
Divine Comedy, has influenced Christian thinkers for generations. In his book,
And Now I See: A Theology of Transformation, Father Barron reflects upon this epic poem at length, expounding upon its correlation to the deepest truths of the spiritual life...