On Monday evening, Notre Dame kicked off Walk the Walk Week, which commemorates Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s legacy, with a prayer service in the Basilica of the Sacred Heart and a candlelight procession towards the Sacred Heart of Jesus statue.
University President Fr. Robert Dowd presided over the service and Claire Babineaux-Fontenot, CEO of Feeding America, delivered a keynote reflection. In celebration of Walk the Walk Week, the prayer service was centered on the idea that we are all sons and daughters of God and are made with an intrinsic dignity.
Fr. Brian Ching, rector of the Basilica, gave the opening remarks to begin the evening of prayer and reflection. In the spirit of Walk the Walk Week, the first reading was read in Spanish with the petitions spoken in a variety of tongues, including Portuguese, Igbo, Mandarin and Polish. This service worked to embody the different cultures of students on campus.
The feature of the service was the keynote reflection given by Babineaux-Fontenot. Feeding America, which she has served as CEO of since 2018, is a nonprofit network of over 200 food banks, statewide food bank associations, food pantries and meal programs. The organization works to create sustainable and equitable solutions while working alongside people experiencing food insecurities. Babineaux-Fontenot was last year's recipient of the Laetare Medal, awarded by the University of Notre Dame which describes the medal as “the most prestigious award given to American Catholics.”
Babineaux-Fontenot’s speech was grounded in the question: “What do we owe?” She explored the importance of a name and the history behind her own name. For many people, family names come with great power and weight to carry on the legacy of the person that worked to make our world a better place.
She emphasized the significance of identifying as Christian. Babineaux-Fontenot explained that it means, “to know that Christ took on our burden, to know that he was without sin, though none of us can say the same.”
She continued to explain what God calls his people on earth to do.
“He told us what he expects of us. He expects us to love God. Not just a little bit. Not just a small piece of ourselves but to love God wholly with everything that we are. He taught us to love each other as He loved the Apostles and as we love ourselves,” Babineaux-Fontenot said. “He told us to love and pray for our enemies. I understand that this can feel like a tall order. But He also taught us that we should seek redemption because He understands that none of us would be perfect at any of this.”
She explains that while she, like humanity, has not made her last mistake, that Jesus is the light that leads her back.
“He is the light that leads us all back,” Babineaux-Fontenot said.
In hope, Babineaux-Fontenot said that “as Catholics, we commit to serve the underserved and provide preferential service to them ... I get to witness kindness, generosity, compassion. I am moved by what I see in us and what I get the opportunity to do with us.”
To conclude the prayer service, attendees were invited to follow the procession out of the doors to the Basilica and pick up a candle as they continued on the lit path to the statue of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
With Mary looking on from atop the golden dome, each person laid their candle in front of the statue of Jesus and took a moment for personal reflection.
After the service, participants were invited to a reception on the second floor of LaFortune Student Center. The reception featured music from the student Mariachi band and a variety of desserts including macaroons, chocolate truffles and cream puffs.
“May your Holy Spirit remind us all that you show no partiality to nationality, race, ethnicity or gender. For us do so, is to go against your great commandment of love toward one another. We pray that the Church will not be complicit in injustice by being silent, but that it can rise with a prophetic voice that speaks of integrity and advances the values of the kingdom,” Dowd said.
