Crumbling Under Pressure
• PORTLAND, August 27, 2015 (ChurchMilitant.com) - Homosexual activism has claimed another victim— this time, a Catholic school in Oregon, where openly defiant homosexuals can now teach students.
The latest LGBT controversy-du-jour revolves around St. Mary's Academy in Portland.
Saint Mary's, sponsored by the Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary, was facing legal trouble for not hiring a woman who admitted to being in open rebellion against the Church's teaching against sodomy and homosexual unions.
The woman, Lauren Brown, had been offered a job to teach at St. Mary's, but that offer was revokedafter she told the school of her plan to be in a same-sex "wedding." Brown had allegedly signed an employment contract, although the school said it never received the signed copy.
The Church's condemnation of sodomy and homosexual unions, while clear, has increasingly become a point of contention in modern, secular societies. The Catechism of the Catholic Church, on the other hand, deems homosexual acts "intrinsically disordered" and the homosexual orientation "objectively disordered." Further, the Church states:
In those situations where homosexual unions have been legally recognized or have been given the legal status and rights belonging to marriage, clear and emphatic opposition is a duty. One must refrain from any kind of formal cooperation in the enactment or application of such gravely unjust laws and, as far as possible, from material cooperation on the level of their application.
Hence, St. Mary's, in line with its Catholic mission, tried to avoid the potential scandal of employing a teacher who openly rejects the Church's teaching authority.
"Like other Catholic schools, St. Mary's Academy is grounded in the teachings of the Catholic Church and asks faculty and staff to support those values," the school had explained in an official statement. "St. Mary's understands that others may hold different values, and we respect the right of individuals in society to do so."
The statement continued: "At St. Mary's we strive to live out the values of the Gospel while struggling with the complexities of today's world."
"This is a very challenging time for our school, our staff, our founders the Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary and our board of directors," notes school president Christina Friedhoff. "As a Catholic school, we recognize that in meeting our obligation to honor the current teachings of the Catholic Church related to employment and same-sex marriage, we strive to find grace and healing within our community. St. Mary's remains committed to diversity and social justice and nurtures the Catholic identity, practice, culture and mission on which we were founded."
Apparently the school had attempted to work out the problem with Brown, but was "unable to find an amicable resolution."
Portland's Archbishop Alexander Sample even lent his public support to the school for making such an unpopular but faithful decision. He said, "We expect that given certain reassurances by the federal government in the wake of the recent Supreme Court ruling making 'same-sex unions' the law of the land, our religious liberty would be protected in this case as well as any future cases of this sort."
The public backlash continued, though, with many alumni and wealthy donors decrying the decision. Tim Boyle, CEO of Columbia Sportswear as well as a major donor to St. Mary's, vocally opposed the move.
Amid the rising tension, school administrators organized a board meeting last night to vote on changing the school's hiring policy.
The board voted to permit the hiring of openly homosexual teachers.
"This evening the board of St. Mary's Academy voted unanimously to support the administration's recommendation to amend and broaden St. Mary's policy on equal employment, bringing our employment policies in line with our mission and beliefs," read a statement from president Friedhoff. "Effective immediately, St. Mary's has added sexual orientation to its equal employment opportunity policy. St. Mary's is a diverse community that welcomes and includes gay and lesbian students, faculty, alumnae, parents and friends, including those that are married. We are proud of our work preparing the next generation of women leaders for service and leadership."
Friedhoff nevertheless concluded, "We are still deeply committed to our Catholic identity."
As for Lauren Brown, the school had reportedly already filled her desired position prior to the meeting, but it will resume talks with her in order to reconcile their earlier differences.
At the time of this publication, the archdiocese of Portland's website still has only a statement in support of the school's prior decision to revoke Brown's job offer.
UPDATE (8/27/2015, 7:00 PM ET): The archdiocese has responded on its website.
"The Archdiocese is aware of the decision made by St. Mary’s Academy, and will continue our conversation with school officials."