Back when Tom Monaghan was a kid in a Catholic orphanage, every Catholic would have recognized the question posed by the Psalmist: Quid retribuam Domino pro omnibus quae retribuit mihi?

“What return shall I make to the Lord for all He has given me?”

This verse was recited by the priest at every Mass, during Communion, just before taking the Cup of Salvation.

Domino is Latin for “to the Lord.” “Domino’s” is English for the chain of pizzerias which has made Tom Monaghan a very wealthy man. And for at least the last 25 years, Monaghan has been trying to find a way to make a return to the Lord for all that Domino’s has given him.

It looks like he might have found the way. Monaghan is building a brand new university, and a brand new city to surround it, in a tomato field in Florida. Ave Maria will be the name of the university, and of the town. Apparently this extremely ambitious project has been in the works for at least two years, but I first learned of it today, in the American Spectator.

The town won’t be open until next year, but Monaghan has already jump-started the ACLU smear machine just by saying he doesn’t envision any strip clubs on his property. It’s off to a fine start.