The Archdiocese of Boston has decreed that
children of same-sex couples can enrol in its parochial schools,
reversing a 2010 decision at the parish level refusing one such
admission, reports the National Catholic Register.
The decision drew a mixed reaction from Catholics, but won the swift
endorsement of Michael Reardon, executive director of Boston's Catholic
Education Foundation, an independent organiastion that funds school
construction and repair as well as scholarships.
The foundation had announced in the wake of last year's rejection of a
same-sex couple's child that it would provide no scholarships to
schools that discriminated in this way.
"From the perspective of the foundation, the key part of this is that
it does not exclude any group of students, and it promotes what is
essential to Catholic education, which is inclusivity,'' Reardon said.
The January 12 statement
from the Catholic Schools Office of the archdiocese cited a statement
made by Pope Benedict XVI to an assembly of American Catholic education
officials in 2008 that said, "No child should be denied his or her right
to an education in faith, which in turn nurtures the soul of the
nation."
The schools office also states that "Parent(s)/guardian(s) of
students in Catholic schools must accept and understand that the
teachings of the Catholic Church are essential and are a required part
of the curriculum."
In contrast, Denver Archbishop Charles Chaput strongly supported a
school in Colorado that told a lesbian couple last year that their child
could not enroll for first grade.
As the archbishop explained at that time, Catholic schools are
committed to working with parents in teaching the Catholic faith.
But
"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."