Among the most insightful commentaries in the wake of Notre Dame is this one, sent to me from a reader. It comes from the Wall Street Journal’s William McGurn:

Probably Notre Dame is rich enough that it can safely thumb its institutional nose at the 70 or so bishops who publicly challenged the university for flouting their guidelines on such invitations. Nor can we expect much from Notre Dame’s trustees. At a time when Americans all across this country have declared themselves “yea” or “nay” on the Obama invite, the reaction of Notre Dame’s board is less the roar of the lion than the silence of the lambs.

Pro-lifers are used to this. They know their stand makes them unglamorous. They find themselves a stumbling block to Democratic progressives — and unwelcome at the Republican country club. And they are especially desperate for the support of institutions willing to engage in the clear, thoughtful and unembarrassed way that even Mr. Obama says we should.

With its billions in endowment and its prestigious name, Notre Dame ought to be in the lead here. But when asked for examples illuminating the university’s unambiguous support for unborn life, [university spokesman] Dennis Brown could provide only four: help for pregnant students who want to carry their babies to term, student volunteer work for pregnant women at local shelters, prayer mentions at campus Masses, and lectures such as a seminar on life issues.

These are all well and good, but they also highlight the poverty of Notre Dame’s institutional witness. At Notre Dame today, there is no pro-life organization — in size, in funding, in prestige — that compares with the many centers, institutes and so forth dedicated to other important issues ranging from peace and justice to protecting the environment. Perhaps this explains why a number of pro-life professors tell me they must not be quoted by name, lest they face career retaliation.

The one institute that does put the culture of life at the heart of its work, moreover — the Center for Ethics and Culture — doesn’t even merit a link under the “Faith and Service” section on the university’s Web site. The point is this: When Notre Dame doesn’t dress for the game, the field is left to those like Randall Terry who create a spectacle and declare their contempt for civil and respectful witness.

In the National Portrait Gallery of the Smithsonian, there is a wonderful photograph of Father Ted Hesburgh — then Notre Dame president — linking hands with Martin Luther King Jr. at a 1964 civil-rights rally at Chicago’s Soldier Field. Today, nearly four decades and 50 million abortions after Roe v. Wade, there is no photograph of similar prominence of any Notre Dame president taking a lead at any of the annual marches for life.

Father Jenkins is right: That’s not ambiguity. That’s a statement.

You’ll want to read the whole thing. And if anyone was wondering what Archbishop Chaput is saying about the commencement, look no further. It’s here.