President's Blog: From the Heart

By Eric F. Spina

Dear University of Dayton community,

A joyous Easter to you and your loved ones!

Easter, at its heart, is all about hope. Hope did not die on the cross. It rose with Jesus and lives in our hearts, our daily actions, and in all the ways we respond to the needs of our campus community — and the world. Like Mary, we are called to say “yes” — joyfully and fully. 

In this Jubilee Year, it’s especially fitting that Pope Francis invites us to be “pilgrims of hope.” Consistent with the Marianist sprit, he urges us to travel life’s journey together and bring renewed hope and unity to our troubled world.

As we celebrate Easter, Karen and I offer our warmest wishes to Jewish members of the University of Dayton family who are concluding the observance of Passover.

And to all our students, faculty, and staff: may we, in the spirit of Pope Francis, “sing of hope, so that its melody can touch the heartstrings of humanity and reawaken in every heart the joy and the courage to embrace life to the full.”

May God’s grace be with you,

Eric F. Spina
President

(Photo credit: “The Ascension” by Sister Mary Grace Thul, O.P., Oil on canvas, circa 1998. Courtesy of the Marian Library, University of Dayton.)