Saint Mary’s College’s 176th Undergraduate and Graduate Graduation Ceremony was held in May 2023. Molly Burhans delivered the Commencement Address: “A Reminder For 2023 Grads: The Bad Is Loud, But The Good Is Pervasive.” The speech’s message centered on the power of purpose-driven action in addressing global challenges, particularly in the fields of environmental sustainability and social justice. She encouraged the graduates to harness their education to make a positive, lasting impact on the world. The speech also emphasized the importance of listening to both the earth and each other, urging the new graduates to lead with compassion, creativity, and a commitment to stewardship.
Speech Text: “Let me begin by congratulating all the graduates! Whether you are completing your undergraduate degree or you came to Saint Mary’s to continue your growth with a graduate degree, you are celebrating a wonderful moment of completion. And I hope to send you off into the next stage of your life with something to ponder: Why is the bad so loud when the good is so pervasive?
All around us there is good and beauty, and yet we sometimes have difficulty silencing the bad. You have completed an educational goal today: you’ve spent the years leading up to this moment being challenged, facing painful, lonely moments and quiet desperations; you’ve engaged in noisy celebrations; there have been internal adventures of your soul and mind, and perhaps external journeys that have taken you far from home — this is all tremendously admirable and not a small feat. I pray for all of you that the pervasive good always makes itself more noticeable and remarkable in ways that drown out the bad in your lives…” (Click the “Read More” button below to read full speech)