Denver Archbishop Explains Why Lesbian Couple's Child Not Admitted to School

Denver, Colo., Mar 8, 2010 (CNA/EWTN News).- Archbishop Charles Chaput of Denver weighed-in today on the recent decision to not re-enroll the child of a lesbian couple in a local Catholic school. The archbishop explained, “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.”

Staff members at Sacred Heart of Jesus Church in Boulder, Colorado were told early last week that that an attending preschooler, whose two parents are women, would not be re-enrolled for the following semester.

After mostly negative media coverage, Archbishop Chaput dedicated his weekly column in the Denver Catholic Register to addressing the decision to not offer enrollment to the Boulder, Colo. preschooler.

The Denver archbishop began by discussing the historical background of Catholic schools in America, which he explained were founded in the 19th century “as an alternative to the public schools of the day, which taught a curriculum often hostile to Catholic belief.”

“In many ways times have changed, but the mission of Catholic schools has not,” the prelate stated. “The main purpose of Catholic schools is religious; in other words, to form students in Catholic faith, Catholic morality and Catholic social values.”

The archbishop explained that “Many of our schools also accept students of other faiths and no faith, and from single parent and divorced parent families. These students are always welcome so long as their parents support the Catholic mission of the school and do not offer a serious counter-witness to that mission in their actions.”

“Our schools, however, exist primarily to serve Catholic families with an education shaped by Catholic faith and moral formation. This is common sense,” he added. “Other religious traditions do the same according to their beliefs, and at a heavy sacrifice. We need to remember that Catholic families pay twice for a Catholic education: through their taxes, they fund public education; then they pay again to send their children to a Catholic school.”  ::MORE
 

Refusal of Lesbian Couple's Child at Catholic School Brings Out Dissenters