Religion & American Law

Two children currently enrolled as students at The Sacred Heart of Jesus School will not be allowed to return to school next year. Why? Because their parents are lesbians.

This article states that last month the Archdiocese of Denver defended the Catholic school's decision to ban the children from attending the school, on the grounds that their parents' lifestyle goes against the doctrines and teachings of the Catholic Church. The two children are currently both in preschool; the oldest child was enrolled in kindergarten for next year, and the younger child was enrolled for another year of preschool. The oldest child is allowed to complete this year but will not be allowed to return next school year, and the younger child is allowed to complete all preschool years, but will also not be allowed to enroll in kindergarten. In an article published in the Denver Catholic Register, Archbishop Charles Chaput wrote, "The Church does not claim that people with a homosexual orientation are 'bad' or that their children are less loved by God. Quite the opposite. But what the Church does teach is that sexual intimacy by anyone outside marriage is wrong; that marriage is a sacramental covenant; and that marriage can only occur between a man and a woman. These beliefs are central to a Catholic understanding of human nature, family and happiness, and the organization of society. The Church cannot change these teachings because, in the faith of Catholics, they are the teachings of Jesus Christ."

When put into those terms, this decision indeed appears to be in line with the Catholic teachings, but DignityUSA director Marianne Duddy-Burke does not feel that way. She says that "the Archdiocese has acted very unjustly" in singling these two children out for exclusion. She continued, "Until every student's parents are tested on Catholic teaching, this action by Catholic officials cannot be understood as anything other than discrimination on the back of a child." Duddy-Burke brings up a valid point. Since the Catholic church does not agree with divorce and remarriage, are children of divorced or remarried parents also being asked to leave the school? Or what about children whose parents have affairs and cheat on their spouses? I'm pretty confident that the Archdiocese is not monitoring the lifestyle of every student's parents, so it seems that this decision was made off of rather inconsistent regulations.

As a private institution, The Sacred Heart of Jesus School has the right to choose who is granted admission into the school. But does it have the right to reject students, even if it means rejecting them on the basis of discriminating against homosexuality?

It seems unfair, but I think that right now it would be in the best interest of both of the children to leave the The Sacred Heart of Jesus and attend elementary school somewhere else next year. If they stay at a school where they are being taught that homosexuality is bad and evil, they will essentially be learning that their mommies are bad, which is clearly not something that children should be learning in school.