Barack Obama may be the U.S.’s first rock-star president, but not everyone agrees with all his policies and beliefs. That was evident this weekend at his highly anticipated commencement speech at the University of Notre Dame on Sunday, May 17.

Obama’s appearance at the nation’s flagship Catholic university sparked weeks of protests because some in the Notre Dame community felt it inappropriate for a president who supports abortions rights to make a speech at a Catholic institution. Even the Vatican stepped into the foray by way of Archbishop Raymond Burke, one of the Vatican's highest ranked clerics and a frequent critic of President Obama, who said that the speech is “rightly the source of the greatest scandal.”

The vast majority of the 12,000 in attendance at the Joyce Center basketball arena gave the president several loud, sustained ovations. And the crowd even rallied to Obama’s defense when people attempted to interrupt him. When someone yelled “Baby killer!” and “You have blood on your hands!,” the crowd responded with boos and then chants of “Yes, we can” and “We are N.D.”

As a protestor was led out by police, Obama diverted from his prepared text to say, “We’re not going to shy away from things that are uncomfortable sometimes.”

For the first time during his presidency, Obama directly confronted the abortion debate head-on. While he has said that he supports a woman’s right to choose, he has also attempted to soften the rough edges of the polarizing issue, asking both sides of the debate to stop demonizing one another.

“Maybe we won’t agree on abortion, but we can still agree that this is a heart-wrenching decision for any woman,” Obama said. “So let us work together to reduce the number of women seeking abortions by reducing unintended pregnancies. Let’s make adoption more available. Let’s provide care and support for women who do carry their children to term.”

Notre Dame’s invitation for Obama to deliver this year’s commencement address – and the decision to award him an honorary degree – stirred up controversy almost immediately. As Obama spoke, a few dozen students were boycotting their graduation at a separate ceremony. Some student opted to attend but expressed their distaste by putting the image of a cross and baby feel on their graduation caps. Other anti-abortion students and their parents wore white carnations on their lapels.