From Fraenkel to Finnis

Father H on the beginning of the persecution of all those who don't toe the 'PC Party Line', especially People of Faith.

From Fr Hunwicke's Mutual Enrichment

When I was an undergraduate, the Faculty of Litterae Humaniores in this University was still enjoying the glorious aftermath of the arrival, in the 1930s, of the flower of European Classical scholarship from the great German universities. Not least, of Edward Fraenkel, still occupying the Corpus Chair of Latin when I came up in 1960.

He, like most of his fellow refugees, was a Jew. Jews were not much welcomed in the universities of Hitlerite Germany. Oxford, to her credit, welcomed them with enthusiasm. (And how it benefited!)

Forward to 2019. The young people ... correction: a few of them ... are now trying to get rid of one of modern Oxford's most distinguished scholars: John Finnis, Fellow of University College, one of modern Oxford's main claims to fame and respect throughout the world of academic Jurisprudence.

Professor Finnis is also a Catholic who is articulate in his expression of the Teaching of the Church.

Of course, these dim youths and youthesses will not be successful in their campaign of intimidation. (Although it might have been amusing to see the University being sued in the courts by one of her own best known jurists.)

But I think we all know, or have heard of, less well-known academics in less well-known institutions who have been deprived of their livelihoods because of their Catholicism or even, may God help us all, their unenlightened pronouns.

They came for the Jews, but I said nothing because I was not a Jew ... ... ... lastly, they came for me ...

They are indeed "coming for us" now. 

[That, incidentally, is why I would defend the rights of Jews to eat according to inherited traditions. S Paul agrees with me.]

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And a trenchant comment made on the post on Father's blog (my emphasis):

Fr William R Young said...

Last week on the Today programme on Radio 4 Justin Webb interviewed Prof. Finnis about views he had expressed in a reprinted paper and which had been selectively quoted by a student member of the University of Oxford to imply that Prof. Finnis was a homophobic troll who ought to be hounded out of office for his odious views. Prof. Finnis defended his published positions and their republication, and was clearly at pains to point out to Justin Webb and his interlocutor that any sexual activity outside of marriage was immoral. Justin Webb repeatedly prevented this point from being made clearly by interrupting Prof. Finnis each time he tried to make the clarification. And then they ran out of time. It was a disgrace, and I regret now that I did not complain to the BBC about the appalling bias against truth that has become usual in that corporation.