Butker’s commencement speech at Benedictine College was bigotry disguised as religion, and these nuns weren’t going to let that slide.
The NFL world has never, and I mean never, talked about Harrison Butker as much as we have this week.
The commencement speech he gave at Benedictine College in Kansas was bad in myriad ways, and I hated it. But I’m actually not here to talk about why I hated it. I’m here to tell you that the Benedictine Sisters of Mt. St. Scholastica, a founding institution and sponsor of Benedictine College, also hated it and explained why in great detail.
The Sisters feel strongly enough about this that the statement about Butker’s speech is currently the home page of their website.
Not only do the Benedictine Sisters work outside the home serving the Lord, they’re a lot more progressive than Harrison Butker thinks Catholics should be. All the way back in 2013, the Sisters were calling for gun control reform to reduce the unfathomable gun violence in this country. They’ve spoken out against racism and misogyny, called for a ceasefire in Gaza, and even though (predictably) they oppose abortion, they at least acknowledge how terrifying the end of Roe is and believe they bear a responsibility for helping to financially and emotionally support people facing unwanted pregnancies. From their statement about the Dobbs ruling on their “Gospel Justice” page:
The Benedictine Sisters of Mount St. Scholastica are especially cognizant of the fear and uncertainty this ruling will have on women who are or will become pregnant in the future. We are all called to give compassion, comfort, and financial assistance to those blessed with giving life, while others may avoid the need. We take it as our responsibility to help these women obtain proper healthcare, as well as food, shelter and other necessities, prior to childbirth and as they care for their family.
While we’re talking about Butker getting dunked on by a bunch of nuns, let’s not gloss over the only good part of the speech, which was the moment Butker quoted “his teammate’s girlfriend,” Taylor Swift. Referring to her by name might have suggested he respects women who work outside the home, and that would have been a jarring departure for this speech, so obviously he kept it consistent.
Anyway, what Butker said was: “As my teammate’s girlfriend says, ‘Familiarity breeds contempt,’” and it’s a hilarious self-own.
Swift, as everyone who has ever been on the internet knows, is dating Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, and in addition to being a very well-known proverb, “Familiarity breeds contempt” is also a lyric from Taylor’s song ‘Bejeweled’ on the album Midnights.
And ‘Bejeweled’? Well, that’s a song about a successful woman not being willing to let a mediocre man dull her shine, limit her, or tell her what she’s capable of accomplishing. So it’s basically the opposite of the message Butker was trying to get across. Great choice, Harrison! No, seriously, great choice — this was the only reasonable thing you said or referenced in your entire speech.
I’m sure a lot of young women in that Benedictine College graduating class would have rather had Butker’s teammate’s girlfriend as their commencement speaker. The nuns might even agree.
