US: The president of Notre Dame University in Indiana, where President Mary McAleese will speak next month, has backed down from a threat to ban an annual production of The Vagina Monologues and the university's gay film festival.
Fr John Jenkins said that after seeing the play and discussing the issue with students and academics, he concluded the two events did not undermine Notre Dame's Catholic ethos.
"A Catholic university is where the Church does its thinking, and that thinking, to be beneficial, must come from an intellectually rigorous engagement with the world. For that reason I am very determined that we not suppress speech on this campus," he said in a statement.
In January, Fr Jenkins said he objected to The Vagina Monologues' graphic descriptions of sexual experiences and its portrayal of human sexuality outside traditional relationships. The gay film series, previously known as the Queer Film Festival, was allowed to proceed this year only after its name was changed to: Gay & Lesbian Film: Filmmakers, Narratives, Spectatorships.
Fr Jenkins said he changed his mind about the play when he saw it in February and took part in an academic discussion afterwards.
"These panels taught me and perhaps taught others that the creative contextualization of a play like The Vagina Monologues can bring certain perspectives on important issues into a constructive and fruitful dialogue with the Catholic tradition," he said.
Conservative Catholic groups condemned Fr Jenkins's climbdown and the local bishop said he was saddened by the decision.
Mrs McAleese will give the commencement address at Notre Dame next month at the end of a week-long visit to the US.