A Timeline of the Heterodox Chaplains of the Cornell Catholic Community and the Catholic student response

NB: this history is sketchy, but is intended to be filled out by our readers who are Cornell alumni. We particularly would like to know when the confessional in the auditorium ceased to be used and when it was rented to the Jewish community. Items that appear italicized below are of less certain authenticity

1967: The largest Newman club in the United States restyles itself the Cornell Catholic Community. Neither this new entity nor the Newman Club before it are paragons of orthodoxy, but nevertheless Catholics at Cornell have the choice of three daily masses on campus, confession during 5PM mass every day of the week, five masses on Sundays and numerous visitors, classes, and social activities.
1983: Father Michael Mahler becomes chaplain of the CCC, ends practice of daily Mass with leavened bread around a coffee table by moving it into Anabel Taylor Chapel; later institutes regular Advent / Lent general absolution services.
1989-1991: Student group prays daily Rosary at 7:30 AM
1990: Students attempt parish council takeover, take 5 of the 10 elected seats; after the graduation of 4 of these council members, Fr. Mahler agrees to stay as chaplain provided he holds ultimate authority in the CCC.
1991: Departure of Fr. John Forni, a more orthodox chaplain / priest of the Diocese of Rochester. Donation of CCC monstrance by student group.
1994: Sr. Donna Fannon joins the CCC staff, brought in to organize a Catholic shared residence, a project that never begins. Among other noteworthy remarks, she referred to the late pontiff as a misogynist (for Ordinatio Sacerdotalis) and lamented that the Church is not doing enough for gays.
ca. 2000 Regular Tuesday / Thursday vespers, adoration with Fr. Ed Ondrako, OFM Conv., Simon (now a teacher in Singapore and aspiring seminarian?), Lori (Chemistry grad student), and other students.
1998-2001: Lone student protests liturgical abuses, other outrages.
2000-2003: Catholic undergraduates regularly told to consult psychiatrists because they protested abuses a little too much. What abuses? Lack of kneeling during the consecration, lay preaching, and crumbly “unleavened wheat bread” (baked as a fellowship activity) used as Eucharistic matter.
2001: Departure of Fr. Ed Ondrako, OFM Conv. A more orthodox chaplain who organized evening prayer, rosary groups, and Eucharistic adoration.
2001: Formation of Aquinas, an undergraduate group inspired by the Legionaries of Christ’s Compass apostolate, but not officially aligned with the LC because of chaplaincy worries that the Legionaries were too conservative and anti-gay; regular Friday Rosary at 5PM begun.
Reports that the CCC’s RCIA, under Sr. Donna Fannon, uses Richard McBrien’s condemned-by-the-USCCB book, Catholicism as a principal, “mainstream” text; RCIA for non-baptized persons takes two years (!).
2002: Arrival of Msgr. Robert Smith as assistant chaplain and Phil “Pax” Fiadino as lay peace and social justice “chaplain” to oppose the death penalty and war … but not actively to oppose abortion. Never mind that the CCC invited a speaker at this time who gave human cloning a thumbs up!
2003:Occasional Eucharistic Adoration begins with Ambrosius, Sean Breheny (president of Cornell’s pro-life group
who later moved on to seminary), Margaret (another big pro-lifer), Geoffrey Mull (Cornell Review), John DeBarbieri, and Catharina Senensis. This later splits into normal adoration and also “XLT” (exult) under the leadership, at first, of a protestant music director
Departure of the best music director the CCC ever had after he became disgusted with the chaplaincy’s unCatholic atmosphere and its effect on his soul. He had tried to reintroduce good hymns and Gregorian chant. The chaplains said they wanted more of the hippie stuff. It is because of him that weekly Vespers took off, as he led it in english / latin gregorian chant.
Departure of Fr. Mahler from CCC; Fr. Smith takes over as interim chaplain, discontinues general absolution services, though the previous invalid absolutions go unmentioned and unapologized.
CCC invites convicted felon Daniel Berrigan, SJ, to campus.
Fall: Aquinas ceases to be independent of CCC.
2004: Formation of Cornell Catholic Circle, 9 PM daily Rosary begun.
2004 Spring: Traditional Mass celebrated for Cornell students through Catholic Circle planning.
2005 Spring : Tuesday/Thursday Eucharistic Adoration in the Blessed Sacrament closet and on First Fridays.
2005: Arrival of Fr. Daniel McMulllin as head chaplain; Adoration discontinued without explanation.
2006: Phil Fiadino and Theresa Miller dismissed for budgetary reasons.
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