Resilience and Hope on October 7

Dear LMU Community,

The coming months bring us opportunities for reflection and renewal following a year that has challenged us. In this moment, I share my support for the members of our LMU family who identify with the Israeli and Palestinian global and faith communities. As we approach the anniversary of Oct. 7, we mourn the lives that were lost on that day and those that have been lost since. We recognize the weight of history that precedes that tragic day, and we offer our continued prayers for peace.

During these challenging times, LMU’s Catholic, Jesuit, and Marymount traditions offer a clear path: to engage a multiplicity of viewpoints, including those that render us uncomfortable, while maintaining our commitment to the dignity of each individual. A range of programming—including several student- and community-organized events—demonstrates this active engagement. In the spirit of cura personalis, resources are available to support your well-being and free expression. I am grateful to our faculty, our student development professionals, and our campus ministers for their leadership in providing this care to our students.

Be assured that we remain committed to protecting our university community. We reject antisemitism, Islamophobia, xenophobia, and any form of discrimination and bias at LMU. If you experience or witness harassment, please report your concerns to Public Safety, which works closely with the Bias Incident Response Team.

As we encounter perspectives as diverse as our LMU family, the Ignatian practice of discernment remains integral to our conversations and relationships. This is our whole-person education at work: openness to a plurality of views as part of our inclusive care for one another and the world around us. Let us continue to answer that call with resilience and hope. And always, even when utilizing our rights and ethics of free speech, let us consider how our expressions and behaviors may be received by those whose journeys through life accompany ours.

In community,

Timothy Law Snyder, Ph.D.
President