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To: Alberta's Child

In most jurisdictions, a Catholic hospital that accepts public funding is Catholic in name only because it must sell its soul for the public money.

That may be true, I don't know but in Alberta, that is not the case. Several hospitals are run by Catholic organizations, are publicly funded, and refuse to provide abortion services. It is not really an issue because abortion clinics also exist.

Alberta is an interesting place because of its unusual system of allocating tax dollars to schools. Taxpayers actually check off which local school "district" (public or "separate") they want to support when they pay their school taxes, so religious schools actually get as much public funding as their supporters want to give them. The only problem is that most people who are serious about their religion will tell you that the Catholic schools are not much better than the public schools in most areas related to faith and morals.

Not quite accurate. Alberta allocates funds to school districts which, theoretically, should be on a per pupil basis but in reality, are not - rural schools have higher per student funding. Catholic schools are funded separately because of the BNA Act. One cannot determine which school district one supports in Alberta: Those who sign a stat dec stating they are Roman Catholic can have their tax dollars allocated to the Separate (i.e. Catholic) School Board in the appropriate municipality.

However, a certain number of dollars follow students no matter what school they attend - public, Catholic, or "charter" schools (as long as they follow the Alberta curriculum, and are approved by Alberta Education, they can enroll students and receive funding.

I would also disagree on morals. I am not Catholic. I am an Albertan, however, and my children attend a Catholic school. Morals were not an issue. It just happened to be the best school in the community, and many of its students are not Catholic. There is a real emphasis on Christian faith. There is a requirement for respect of each individual. School starts with prayer, and from kindergarten, religion is a component. In first grade, each child is given a blessed rosary. In each year, there is an emphasis on a Christian theme - such as collecting supplies/coats/etc. for needy children, making lunches for the homeless, fundraising for an inner city school's field trip, etc.

Most Catholics I know in Alberta send their kids to completely private/religious schools.

Most Catholics I know in Alberta send their children to Catholic schools. Most Albertan children attend public schools. There are charter schools, but they are in the minority, because Alberta school boards offer such varied programs.


32 posted on 11/16/2005 3:30:55 PM PST by instantgratification
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To: instantgratification

These women who want to kill their babies can find themselves an abortion clinic. This is just a ploy to force religous hospitals to change their policies.


40 posted on 11/16/2005 7:11:08 PM PST by virgil
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