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Some call it a celebration of female empowerment; others say it's crass and immodest. But "The Vagina Monologues" continues to find a home on Catholic college campuses each year, especially around Valentine's Day.

John Ritchie is director of the Student Action group of the Pennsylvania-based American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property. He said the vignettes in the play describing sexual encounters are "directly contradictory to the Sixth Commandment which calls Christians, Catholics to purity and modesty."

Loyola University Chicago and DePaul University--both Catholic--are hosting performances this month, with proceeds going to women’s advocacy groups. Both productions are part of the 10th Annual V-Day, a worldwide movement started by "The Vagina Monologues" author Eve Ensler to end violence against women.

TFP Student Action has gathered about 850 online petitions asking Catholic colleges around the country to stop hosting the show. The Cardinal Newman Society, an organization promoting Catholic identity at colleges and universities, also opposed the performances and has listed addresses of the schools' presidents for petitioners.

"We have bags and bags of hate mail," said Melissa Furlette, a junior at DePaul who has been producing "The Vagina Monologues" for two years. "We always extend an invitation to [on-campus protestors] to comp their tickets so they can see it instead of just talk about it."

Furlette, 21, said some of the proceeds from this year's production are going to the Students Active for Ending Rape--a national organization that helps college campuses obtain resources to help rape victims. She said DePaul has a counseling center but not long-term services or referral systems for sexual assault survivors.

Nicki Shamel, a sophomore who is directing Loyola's production, said people have a problem with the play for "aesthetic reasons," citing explicit language used throughout the play. In the play, several women describe their own sexual experiences in a series of monologues.

Both Shamel and Furlette said despite the opposition, their school advisors are supportive of the cause.

"People need to realize that it's a social cause rather than just a performance," Shamel, 20, said. "These are not characters; they're actually women's stories."

But Ritchie said that doesn't make the production OK.

"The claim that it's benefitting women doesn't really convince Catholics," Ritchie said. "In reality, the production robs women of their dignity."

According to the Cardinal Newman Society, 19 Catholic campuses are holding the play this year--down from 32 in 2003.

In 2006, the president of Providence College banned showing "The Vagina Monologues" on campus, leading to protests, and ultimately, a film documenting the controversy. "Venus, Priests, and Superwomen" debuted last month in Providence, R.I.

Alexia Kosmider, producer of the film, said she is trying to get it screened at Providence College and other Catholic colleges to raise awareness.

"I think it would be really interesting and fruitful for them," she said.

Kosminder hasn't heard back from Providence and said she thinks the administration wants to forget about the incident.

"I personally feel like in some ways we lost the battle," she said, adding that the current women's group on the campus is producing a different play in its place with both men's and women's roles.

"The point of "The Vagina Monologues" is that it is women's viewpoints," she said. "It helps students understand what the struggle is about."

DePaul is hosting performances this Saturday and Sunday benefitting SAFER and the domestic violence shelters Apna Ghar and Neapolitan Lighthouse. Loyola's productions will be held Feb. 21, 22 and 23 with proceeds going to Chicago Rape Victim Advocates and Porchlight Counseling Services. Both are open to the public.

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