She explained that Bishop Aquila agreed to the interview “because he knows the importance of the news media in reaching out to people with the teachings of the Catholic Church. The teachings on the dignity of all human life are especially important to him, and he frequently addresses, through his homilies and writings, how our society today attacks that dignity through the courts, through legislation, in the media, and in many other ways.”
“Many people will never be aware of the inherent dignity of human life – the inherent dignity of their own lives - and the multiple efforts against human life at its most vulnerable stages unless Catholic leaders and others share this news in the public arena, she continued. “Bishop Aquila frequently calls on the people of the Diocese of Fargo to live their faith in the world. He is setting an example for us by doing so, himself, through news media interviews like the one scheduled for tonight.”
The bishop previously spoke out against the invitation last month when he sent a letter to Father John Jenkins, president of Notre Dame saying that he was both "surprised and saddened" to learn that President Obama "would be speaking at the commencement exercises and also be receiving an honorary degree."