With the new Ave Maria University up and running down in Florida, the inevitable comparisons to another Catholic university to the north — specifically, the one in South Bend, Indiana — have started to crop up.

This report from South Bend fires the first shot:

Each building at the University of Notre Dame has its own chapel, each classroom its own crucifix.

Its hometown of Notre Dame, just minutes from South Bend, Ind., borrows its name, and some of its religious identity, from the school.

That is where the comparisons end between the 165-year-old private Catholic college and Ave Maria University, still in its infancy.

AMU founder Tom Monaghan makes a distinction each time he speaks about the genesis of his school. Other Catholic colleges, he has said, are becoming far too liberal, and are shying away from their Catholic identity to attract more students.

Ave Maria, he has said, will not be one of those.

Monaghan speaks glowingly about Notre Dame’s academics, athletics and tradition. He stops just short of challenging their Catholic devotion.

“I try never to compare us to Notre Dame,” Monaghan said, smirking. “I try not to talk about the competition.”

But whispers about Notre Dame’s secular nature haven’t gone unnoticed.

The Rev. John Jenkins, president of Notre Dame, said the university is no less Catholic than it ever was. The intermingling of Catholics and non-Catholics on the 11,600-student campus only adds to the school’s rich, religious culture, he said.

“Faith and reason are at their best when they are in dialogue with other religious traditions,” Jenkins said. “I think the presence of non-Catholics helps us to be better Catholics, because they help us to think more deeply about our faith.”

As residents move into the town of Ave Maria east of Naples, they may find it difficult to escape the influences of the school, located in the center of town. A 100-foot-tall oratory, topped with a Celtic cross, serves as a highly visible reminder of the university’s Catholic allegiance.

Notre Dame’s Catholicism appears to have leaked into the surrounding community, too. According to 2000 U.S. census data, the number of practicing Catholics in St. Joseph County, where the school is located, outnumbers all other religions by an almost 2:1 ratio.

But for many South Bend residents, Notre Dame’s famous Golden Dome serves as more of a landmark than a religious icon. The Catholic label imposed on the surrounding community is hardly noticeable, and does little to affect town business.

“The town has a lot more Catholic churches than I’m used to,” said John Ittenbach, owner of Damon’s restaurant in South Bend. “There seem to be a lot more priests here, and I find that a lot of people have degrees in theology.”

“Notre Dame definitely has an influence on the community, no doubt about it,” agreed Roy George, manager of Eleni’s diner in South Bend. “I wouldn’t say there is too much of a religious impact, though.”

At Notre Dame, students won’t find the equivalent of AMU’s chastity club or its anti-abortion organization. They will instead notice a mingling of cultures and religions. Some from other religions participate in regular Mass at the famed Basilica of the Sacred Heart. Others do not.

“There is a sense of religion inside and outside of the classroom, but there’s always a welcoming hand,” said Notre Dame sophomore Chrisandra Downer, a 2006 graduate of Lely High School in East Naples.

“Notre Dame does have a definite conservative aim to it, but it’s not closed off to new things.”

This could get interesting. And lively.

Photo: University of Notre Dame law school tower, from school website