Posted by
Tom L. on Wednesday, March 10, 2010 1:41:08 PM
Yesterday, I wrote about the Archdiocese of Denver not re-enrolling a child because the parents were lesbians.
I also e-mailed Denver Archbishop Charles Chaput; my e-mail is below.
Archbishop Chaput’s response was:
“Thomas, thank you for your ongoing reflections. I think my column speaks for itself and I am confident in the policy. God bless you.”
Doesn’t quite answer my questions, does it?
Your Excellency:
In response to your and the Archdiocese’s comments on not re-enrolling the child
of a lesbian couple, please consider the following.
“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.”
Would the Archdiocese not enroll (or re-enroll) a child if the parents got
divorced and remarried without a Church annulment? Are there students enrolled
whose parents never married?
“Our schools are meant to be “partners in faith” with parents. If parents don’t
respect the beliefs of the Church, or live in a manner that openly rejects those
beliefs, then partnering with those parents becomes very difficult, if not
impossible. It also places unfair stress on the children, who find themselves
caught in the middle, and on their teachers, who have an obligation to teach the
authentic faith of the Church.”
There are about 10,500 students in Denver’s Archdiocesan schools. Approximately
7% or over 700 are non-Catholic. Are their parents “partners in faith”?
“To allow children in these circumstances to continue in our school would be a
cause of confusion for the student in that what they are being taught in school
conflicts with what they experience in the home.”
Does the teaching of the Roman Catholic faith cause those non-Catholic students
confusion?
Respectfully,