Theodore Hesburgh Library is the primary building of the library system of University of Notre Dame. The building opened on September 18, 1963, as the Memorial Library. It was named after Father Theodore Hesburgh in 1987. The library has 3.39 million volumes, the 61st largest collection among all U.S. research universities.[1]
The side of the library facing the football stadium has a large mural of the resurrected Jesus entitled "The Word of Life". It was designed by Millard Sheets. The image of Jesus is visible from the stadium and has his arms raised in the same fashion as a referee signifying a touchdown. From this similarity came the nickname "Touchdown Jesus".[2] The stadium expansion had the side effect of partially obscuring the view of Touchdown Jesus from the field.