It would have been news enough that Denver's archdiocese fired Toni Talarico for being a lesbian.But it piques my interest even more that it hoped to avoid scandal.
Once again, in the disgrace department, the church has miscalculated.
"It's dumbfounding what they've done to her," says Marlo Carrillo, an angry parishioner at Guardian Angels Catholic Church in north Denver.
Talarico spent 28 years teaching theology at the church where generations of students — both kids and adults — say she was terrific at personalizing Catholicism and making its sacraments meaningful.
She kept quiet about her private life, though members came to know both of her former longtime partners as part of their community.
"It was public knowledge. Toni has never hidden who she is," Carrillo says.
Single again and looking for companionship, Talarico placed her profile on Match.com.
"Delightful Jazzy. Loving life," began her posting seeking women ages 45 to 55.
"I always give 110 percent. I love my family and my friends," the profile continued. "I am looking for a relationship, but not right away. There is time to make sure we are right for each other."
Scandalous? Hardly.
Yet, as she was well aware, her preference runs counter to Catholic teachings that homosexuality is a sin.
"I told myself I lead a good life. I told myself that no institution has a right to judge me based on who God created me to be," says Talarico, who only once was asked by a student about same-sex relationships. She sent him to the priest.
Lawrence Kaiser, Guardian Angels' pastor, confronted Talarico about her online profile, if not directly about her sexuality. She said Barbara Buchanan, the archdiocese's human resources chief, worried that news of a lesbian theology teacher could bring scandal to the church.
Their message was clear: Regardless of her long record of professionalism, being gay was on par with being a sex offender.
Talarico was fired without severance, benefits or even the money accrued in her 401(k).
She spent months fighting the church for access to the $38,000 in her retirement account, which she finally gained last week.
In a stunning act of gutlessness, Kaiser had told his parish that Talarico left to "pursue other opportunities."
"He's a hypocrite who showed no compassion whatsoever. He has upset a lot of people horribly," says Patty Tolle, who left the parish over Talarico's firing.
Kaiser didn't respond to phone calls. The archdiocese wouldn't comment, citing the threat of a lawsuit.
The law is on the church's side. Because Talarico taught theology, it can discriminate against her on the grounds of religious freedom protected by the First Amendment.
For Talarico — who continues holding Bible study for loyal parishioners at her home each week — it's a consolation that the First Amendment also guarantees her the freedom to speak.
"The Catholic Church is a sick institution that has nothing to do with the teachings of Christ," she says. "They could have handled this in a more Christian way."
They also could have done a better job of defining what is and what's not a scandal.
"Priests having sex with little boys? Firing someone because she's gay? Those aren't scandals in the eyes of the archdiocese," says Talarico's lawyer, David Lane.
"A scandal apparently would have been to let her stay."
SIC: DPCom