Posted on 08/11/2007 8:10:32 PM PDT by monomaniac
Iowa Catholic School Board Upholds Catholic Identity - Accepts Resignation of Divorced and Remarried Teacher
By Hilary White
DUBUQUE Iowa, August 8, 2007 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Members of the Waterloo Cedar Valley Catholic Schools Board voted unanimously last night to accept the resignation of a teacher, Tom Girsch, 59, who had remarried after a civil divorce, but who, in the eyes of the Catholic Church, is still married to his first wife. The vote follows a previous vote in July when the board declined to accept the former teacher's resignation.
Catholic teaching does not recognise civil divorce as dissolving a marriage, and considers that a person who remarries without a declaration of nullity (i.e. that the marriage never existed in the first place) from the Church is committing adultery. Before the vote, a letter was read from Archbishop Jerome Hanus of the Dubuque Archdiocese who said that the Catholic identity of the school board was at stake.
Girsch, who taught social studies and served as a sports coach, had originally resigned from his job at Columbus High School after it was revealed he had remarried after a civil divorce. Girsch had tried and failed to obtain a declaration of nullity. But on July12, the board voted 6 to 8 to reject the resignation. At the time of the second vote, Girsch had sought court intervention, but the judge declined to intervene in an internal church matter.
The Waterloo Courier reports that the board voted to accept Girsch's resignation after receiving a letter from Archbishop Hanus that said the issue was not about one man but the nature of the Catholic school and its relationship to the Church.
Hanus wrote about "sacredness and indissolubility of Christian marriage" saying, "Teachers play a key role in the teaching of the faith." The letter reminded the board that its constitution required it to be in agreement with Catholic doctrine. In refusing Girsch's resignation in July, the letter said, the board had attempted to act contrary to Church teaching, and therefore has jeopardized its Catholic identity. "This is unacceptable and requires correction by the CVCS board," the letter read.
Jeff Henderson, the archdiocese superintendent of schools said at the board's meeting, "From where I'm standing, it appears that Catholicity, to some degree, stands in the balance."
"To me tonight, one of the things you need to decide first and foremost is whether you want to be a Catholic school or a private school."
Judge George Stigler had earlier denied a temporary injunction to stop the meeting, saying it would involve the courts too deeply in a matter of religious freedom. "Were this an ordinary corporation, you might have a point," he said. "But when the corporation is in itself the church, how do we do what you would have me do without getting too involved with the workings of the Catholic Church?"
The case highlights the growing pressure on Christian institutions to ignore their religious principles in favour of secular values, particularly the political aims of the homosexual movement.
In contrast with the even-handed ruling from Judge Stigler, a notorious case in 2002 in Ontario saw a court ordering a Catholic school to allow a male student to bring a homosexual date to the graduation dance. In May 2002, Superior Court Justice Robert MacKinnon ruled that not only was the school required to allow Marc Hall to bring his boyfriend as a date, but that Monsignor John Pereyma Catholic high school was not allowed to cancel the dance to avoid public scandal.
Court Forbids Catholic School from Barring Homosexual Date from Prom http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2002/may/02051301.html
This is refreshing in a world where it seems most Catholic schools are nothing more than private schools with a crucifix out front; where Catholic schools wold much rather have non-Catholic students who pay full tuition than kids from Catholic families who get the parish subsidy. I’ve been over my illusions about “Catholic” education for a number of years now.
Good....nice to see the Church sticking to their standards. Now if Catholic colleges would just follow...
Before the vote, a letter was read from Archbishop Jerome Hanus of the Dubuque Archdiocese who said that the Catholic identity of the school board was at stake.
Here we have a Bishop actually fulfilling his vocation to "teach, rule, and sanctify". Hurrah for Archbishop Hanus!
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