Saint Joseph’s University in Philadelphia has announced plans to host pro-abortion media personality Chris Matthews as the Jesuit university’s commencement speaker on May 16, 2009, and to award him an honorary doctorate in communications.

“The bishops of the United States could not have been more clear in recent weeks that it is completely inappropriate for Catholic institutions to honor public figures who support abortion, but sadly Saint Joseph’s University has joined Notre Dame in snubbing the bishops and thereby all faithful Catholics,” said Patrick J. Reilly, president of The Cardinal Newman Society.

Matthews is the widely-recognized host of MSNBC’s Hardball, and has repeatedly and publicly supported legalized abortion. In March, he referred to pro-life advocates opposing the nomination of Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius - a radically pro-abortion Catholic -- as Secretary of Health and Human Services as “terrorists.”

Matthews said he was worried that Sebelius might become the target of “the terrorism of the, of the anti-abortion people.” He then corrected himself to say, “I mean verbal terrorists.”

“The decision to honor a high-profile abortion supporter is made all the more unbelievable given the firestorm of controversy surrounding Notre Dame’s decision to honor President Obama,” noted Reilly. In a little more than two weeks nearly 20 bishops have strongly opposed and more than 240,000 individuals have signed the NotreDameScandal.com petition asking Notre Dame to withdraw the honor.