(Remarks as prepared)
As is our tradition at the University of Notre Dame, let us begin with prayer.
Almighty God, we invite your presence here today. Be with us as we gather together in this
stadium, united as one family of many spiritual and cultural traditions. Under the loving gaze of
Our Blessed Mother, may we celebrate this sacred moment with Christ our Teacher.
Because you loved us first, we begin with gratitude. Thank you for our parents and families, who
have sacrificed so much so that we might graduate today 鈥� and who believed in us long before
we believed in ourselves. Thank you for our roommates and friends, who cheered us on in our
greatest joys, and held us through our deepest sorrows. Thank you for our faculty 鈥� our teachers,
coaches, and mentors 鈥� who have cultivated our minds and hearts, and taught us that the greatest
teacher of all is the love we show one another. And finally, we thank you for the University of
Notre Dame, which has granted us the transformative gift of education, and which sends us forth
today to be stewards of Your hope.
Loving God, guide us as we navigate the path ahead. Empty us of ambition and ego, that we may
know our lives are not our own. Ground us in humility, with eyes attentive enough to see every
person the way that You see them. Fill us with courage and a genuine hunger for justice, that our
hearts might be stirred to the boldness needed to accompany those whose voices need to be
Heard.
Lord God, send your Holy Spirit to dwell within us 鈥� now, and always. So that in the spirit of
Notre Dame, with lives filled with zeal and hearts full of sure hope, we may leave these halls
eager to enter the world as instruments of your peace.
We make this prayer to our gracious and loving God, through the intercession of your Blessed
Mother, the patroness of Notre Dame du Lac. Amen.