A storm has been brewing in the upper reaches of Pennsylvania and though it's peripherally related to the Presidential race, I believe it brings to front a larger issue.

Tuesday evening, Hillary Clinton spoke to a rally held on the campus of Mercyhurst College, a school operated by the Erie Catholic Diocese.

Approximately two weeks ago, the school's newspaper accepted a paid advertisement from the Obama campaign and because the diocese takes the position that they can not accept political advertisements from any candidate because then they'd have to accept ads from all, including those who may be pro-choice, the college applied a temporary ban on political ads until a policy could be written.

Three weeks prior to the controversy surrounding the Obama ad, the college issued invitations to all of the Presidential candidates to consider using Mercyhurst as a venue, if they would be planning any stops in the Erie area. This was done at the request of Student Government and Sen. Clinton was the first to take them up on the offer. As a result, her announcement drew an almost immediate and very public rebuke from the Bishop of Erie, Donald Trautman.

In the school's press release announcing the visit, President Thomas Gamble said;

"Mercyhurst has a longstanding policy of not supporting or opposing any particular candidate for political office, in part to protect its nonprofit status. However, realizing that political discourse is a valuable educational tool, Mercyhurst has in the past made its campus available to candidates to share their views, when and where possible and upon formal request."

"As a Catholic college, Mercyhurst holds itself true to the mission of educating its students in an environment where faith and reason flourish together. We have an obligation to provide a faithful presentation of the teachings of the Church and also to support reason by providing a full range of educational opportunities to our students. It is in the spirit of encouraging dialogue on issues important to the future of the United States and its citizens, whose welfare should be a matter of concern to all of us, that we have chosen to permit this visit."

And in protest of the visit, Bishop Trautman issued the following statement;

"I am disappointed in Mercyhurst College for not reflecting the pro-life stance of the  Catholic Church regarding abortion. As tangible expression of my disappointment, I have notified (Mercyhurst College President Dr. Tom Gamble) that I will not be present for Mercyhurst's graduation. I am open to meeting with Dr. Gamble in the future to ascertain how the Catholic identity of Mercyhurst can be better clarified."

According to the initial reports, Sen. Clinton spoke to a capacity crowd.
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Links;
The Merciad (Mercyhurst Student Paper)
Story from the Catholic News Agency
Erie Times-News
WSEE - CBS - Erie