Boston Catholic schools to accept children of gay parents

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."

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