As the author of the original email that seems to have sparked this dialogue, I am here to say that the original and actual issues have not only been lost, but were first misconstrued and now have been totally replaced by another agenda. Our debate is NOT about Catholic teaching - period. The talk Sister gave was NOT consistent with the videos you can access online. Some of her points were the same as what you can see there and were indeed valid teachings of the Catholic church, with which we CCHS parents support, accept and fully expect from our Catholic educators. What we do NOT accept are her additional comments, purported as fact, regarding gender generalization and the biology of the brain, the souls of men and women, single and divorced parents, and homosexuals. These you CANNOT ACCESS ONLINE. These comments were preposter...ous, unfounded, hurtful, not compassionate, not forgiving, inaccurate and, most to the point, NOT CATHOLIC TEACHING. Not one comment below has been posted by someone who was in the room for this particular session. You ask how we know they were spoken by her, then, since parents were not present. I received one message reminding me that I am relying on my teen, "...who by their very nature are emotional, reactionary and rebellious at times." First, at nearly 17 years old, I trust my daughter.
Then, when hundreds of students repeated identical phrases to their parents, how could we or why would we not believe them? How could we or why would we not stand up and use our voices to protect them and retain our right to be their first educators?
The school Chaplain who asked Sister to come for this type of talk, a talk regarding our children's sexuality and relationships, had an obligation to tell us she was coming and what her message would be, so that we could decide if they should attend. Afterward, he had an obligation to try to offer healing or help to those students who were upset by her words, particularly those who were offended during the talk. Rather, he has defended her completely, has said nothing to the students and to one boy who spoke to him about not appreciating her content, he was belittling and condescending. We want a shepherd for our students while they are there, not this. So, those of you who have taken this issue further than what I have stated above have missed the point completely and distorted the original message. I believe I can state that with authority since I wrote it. I am of the belief that I merely put into words what was obviously a very important issue for most of the families at CCHS, or we wouldn't be where we are. My prayer is for mutual respect and for harmony in our community, for more transparency and less politics between the Diocese and our schools (and parishes, for that matter), and the end to the debate over what brand of Catholicism is best. I wonder, "WWPFD? What would Pope Francis do?" Charlotte Catholic has been a thriving high school for decades, long before our present Chaplain arrived, long before my four years there in the 70's, and it has helped produce thousands of faithful and compassionate adults. There must have been something right and good going on all those years.
