Celebrating FIFTY YEARS ANNUAL REPORT 2018-2019 President’s Message AS CATHOLIC THEOLOGICAL UNION CELEBRATED THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF ITS FOUNDING, it seems appropriate, in a spirit of gratitude, to reflect on the achievements of the past, celebrate our present, as well as the exciting opportunities ahead of us. At the October gathering, we commemorated the 50th anniversary of CTU’s founding when in 1968 the three religious communities that founded CTU took the risk of beginning something new. They pooled their resources and came together in the Hyde Park university neighborhood to do together something they could never do separately—build a school of theology that would serve the future of the Church in a unique way. Planted in the heart of the city. Welcoming into its classroom lay women and men, as well as seminarians and religious. Opening its students to ecumenical and inter-religious dialogue. In short, preparing its students for a global church. In celebration of our mission and to mark our 50th anniversary, CTU has embarked on a capital campaign called Forward in Faith. The CTU family is coming together to help move CTU forward in service to the Church and the world. Rev. Mark R. Francis, CSV The campaign has a goal of $16 million. Half of this goal is dedicated to provide scholarships for outstanding students who have the qualities to serve the church with integrity. The remaining goals are to maintain and develop our superb faculty—one of the hallmarks of CTU—and to equip the institution with emerging technology that will advance CTU’s critically important mission throughout the country and the world. Lay students and seminarians, choosing a vocation of ministry, are not blind to the challenges facing the Church. They are painfully aware that the “fresh air” that Pope John XXIII promised would blow through the window opened by the Second Vatican Council has not penetrated all parts of the Church. Most of our students recognize that the Church as an institution must still struggle with the sexual abuse crisis, financial scandals, racism and the second-place status of women in ministry. They also recognize that our present culture is often hostile to the life-giving values proclaimed in the Gospel that causes many to disdain a life of religious service. These students are making a courageous choice to serve Christ and the Church in the face of these challenges—a choice that could only be the result of the presence of the Spirit that has called them to a life of ministry. Aware of this context, CTU prepares its students to effectively proclaim Christ’s message of freedom, reconciliation and love. 19 –20 In the pages that follow, we share two perspectives on the need for “comprehensive” support for CTU—annual support to 18 20 sustain us, and capital support to help us grow. OPPOSITE PAGE Ultricies etiam erat semper nullam diam et magna donec, torquent iaculis enim elementum suspendisse leo molestie tempus, ipsum adipiscing nisl annual report amet habitant porttitor in lectus rhoncus. Et magna donec, torquent era iaculis enim elementum suspendisse. 02 For Trustee, Mary Margaret Cowhey, CTU is a haven—a place where people are We are pleased to tell you that because of the generosity of CTU’s sponsoring working at making the world better and understanding each other better. She religious communities and its many lay friends who have already had an has expressed this admiration in not only serving on the Board of Trustees, opportunity to support the campaign effort, over $13 million has been pledged but also supporting CTU in myriad financial ways—especially scholarships for towards our goal. What makes this generosity all the more extraordinary is that lay students. the commitments to this campaign have been made above and beyond the annual support our donors have provided each year to sustain CTU’s operations. Fr. Rosendo Urrabazo of the Claretian Missionaries values CTU from the vantage point of provincial of one of CTU’s Corporation communities, electing to invest Thank you for your support of our mission. in CTU over other possible ministries. Fr. Rosendo sees the community of CTU 19 as one well positioned to listen and think critically about the issues facing the Sincerely, –20 18 Catholic Church in the 21st Century. 20 We are committed in these next 50 years to continue the legacy of the religious priests and brothers, religious women and lay people who have prepared for a Rev. Mark R. Francis, CSV life of ministry at CTU and boldly proclaimed the Good News of Jesus Christ— President even at the cost of their lives. annual report 03 From the Chair HEADWINDS FACING THE CHURCH HAVE BEEN STEADY. Pope Francis has evoked a wind of change into the global church. One example is his leadership of the Amazon Synod, opening up possibilities of new ways to allow more local leadership, and more room for lay ministry. Not the least of which was a special acknowledgement and appreciation for the role of women in the Church. Rev. Kurt F. Hartrich, OFM During the last fiscal year, a longtime friend of CTU sat down to make a significant commitment to theForward in Faith capital campaign. He recounted to us later that while writing the check on behalf of his family, he paused for a moment, troubled by the challenges facing the Church right now. Should he make this gift? Then he reflected on the good that CTU has represented over Still, CTU has the enviable position of a strong balance sheet. Looking to the decades, and its uniquely effective ability to prepare men and women of the horizon of the next fifty years, the promise of CTU’s long-term financial faith to take on leadership roles in ministry. He could affirm that CTU is part investments is strong. The success of the Forward in Faith campaign will of the solution for the Church. With great confidence, he completed the task augment the long-term ability to provide needed scholarships for lay students of re-investing in CTU. to pursue leadership roles in ministry. That CTU is part of the solution has never been more true. Lay and religious We are committed to creative approaches to recruitment strategies; to graduates of CTU are playing integral parts in ministries and organizations streamlining internal operations; and to innovating educational programs. We around the world. The faculty are invaluable resources for the Church at large, are an agile organization—able to be responsive to the needs of the Church and CTU is investing in effective ways to expand its reach through online and Society as well as opportunities presented through new programs and programs and education. online technology. At CTU, the necessary components are all in place, and the model is tested. I am grateful to our excellent Board of Trustees for their commitment to CTU and their critical guidance navigating these waters. Through an extraordinary Yet this special place has not been immune to the Church’s negative response to the Forward in Faith campaign, and their ongoing annual support, headwinds. Vocations—whether to religious life or to lay ministry—take they are committed to positioning CTU for the future, and working with CTU great courage and great sacrifice. Enrollment in 2018-19 was lower than the faculty and staff in addressing all headwinds that come our way. previous year, so tuition income did not meet budget expectations. Annual 19 gifts and grants revenue was strong, outperforming budget expectations. Sincerely, –20 Investment performance exceeded our budget, but fell below industry 18 20 benchmarks. Ultimately, the drop in enrollment combined with unanticipated costs resulted in a net deficit. Rev. Kurt Hartrich, OFM Chairman annual report 04 Three alumni in particular paid the ultimate price for their vocation as CTU martyrs. Comboni Missionary fr. ezechiele ramin was ATHOLIC THEOLOGICAL UNION had the unique opportunity martyred in Brazil in 1985 for standing up for the rights during its 2018-19 golden anniversary year to look back and of landless farmers. He was proposed as a special patron give thanks for all that has been built and accomplished in its saint for the upcoming synod on the Amazon celebrated fifty-year history. In October, hundreds of alumni, friends and in Rome this past October. Csupporters gathered for a multi-media presentation on the Founding of CTU. This event featured representatives from the three founding orders After his graduation from CTU in 1977, fr. salvatore and current faculty and was narrated by Carol Marin, accomplished carzedda, pime was assigned to the Philippines. for our Past journalist and dear friend of CTU. He worked with a non-governmental organization dedicated to building interreligious dialogue between In May, the CTU community came together again to celebrate a mass of Christians and Muslims in Zamboanga City, a commitment that involved risk because of the acute thanksgiving for fifty years of life and mission at St. Thomas the Apostle tensions in the region. Shot on his way home from a Catholic Church, with Cardinal Blase J. Cupich presiding. Following the meeting, Salvatore paid for his commitment with his life. anniversary mass, the academic center on the CTU campus was dedicated as “The James and Catherine Denny Center at Catholic Theological Union.” Comboni Missionary fr. john ssenyondo, mccj, a native This naming was CTU’s tangible expression of gratitude for the Denny of Uganda, ministered to the persecuted indigenous Family’s decades of philanthropic support and vision. peoples in the Diocese of Chilpancingo-Chilapa, Mexico. In April 2014 he was kidnapped by armed men as he returned home from celebrating a wedding; his remains were later discovered in a mass grave.