Posted on 10/31/2005 11:22:41 PM PST by Antioch
The mother of a Loretto High School student obtained photographs that exposed a drama teacher as a former Planned Parenthood volunteer, a revelation that led to the teacher's firing last week. It wasn't the first time Wynette Sills raised her anti-abortion views on the all-female, private Catholic campus. Sills, who leads anti-abortion rallies outside Sacramento-area Planned Parenthood offices three times a week, complained to school administrators last year about a classroom presentation on domestic violence, said Gail Erlandson, a theology teacher for 11 years at Loretto.
Sills objected to brochures listing agencies that offer help for women because they included Planned Parenthood, which supports abortion rights. The brochure was later revised. Bishop William K. Weigand's call to fire drama teacher Marie Bain in response to Sills' latest protest has raised concerns in some circles that anti-abortion activists at Loretto have too much pull with the Sacramento Diocese's top cleric.
"There are a handful of extremists in the affluent Catholic community that can make keeping the integrity of academic freedom very difficult," said Erlandson, who retired last year in part over the brochure flap. "There is a lot of fear among teachers: How far is this going to go?" Sills did not return repeated messages left on her telephone or at her home. Sills provided photos of Bain escorting women into the clinic in a Sept. 19 e-mail with a letter stating: "If the identification is verified, clearly this individual cannot be a part of the Loretto staff."
Bain "will have extensive unsupervised access to our young women at Loretto, and I must speak up or they are put at risk due to her abortion-promoting presence," Sills wrote. "My conscience will not let me ignore this information." Loretto, a college preparatory school on El Camino Avenue, is one of three Catholic high schools in the Sacramento area that operate independently of the diocese. But the school still falls under the bishop's purview on issues of morality. Weigand, who declined to comment for this story, exercised that authority in an Oct. 5 letter to Loretto's president, Sister Helen Timothy.
Weigand's spokesman, the Rev. Charles McDermott, said the diocese "treads carefully not to intrude on internal affairs." But the message in Weigand's letter is clear: "I am directing you, under the provisions of Code of Canon Law ... to dismiss Ms. Bain with all deliberate speed." The letter also states that the termination should be handled with "dignity, sensitivity and appropriate decorum."
Dom Puglisi, superintendent of Catholic schools for the Diocese of Sacramento, said parents have a right to expect their students will be taught in accordance with Catholic principles. And allowing teachers to publicly display contrary beliefs sends the wrong message, he said. "It sounds like we play hardball, but they know up front, whether they are Catholic or non-Catholic, that these are Catholic schools and we go by the teachings of the church and Rome," said Puglisi. Loretto has long employed Catholic and non-Catholic faculty alike. Bain, who was hired in August, is not Catholic. That fact could play a role in a potential discrimination lawsuit, wrote Bain's attorney, John M. Poswall, in a statement.
"Loretto knew that she was not a Catholic and did not insist that she either hold or follow Catholic doctrine when they hired her," wrote Poswall. Vocal parents demanding action from administrators are not unique to Loretto, said the Rev. Martin Connell, an education professor at Loyola Marymount University, a Jesuit college in Los Angeles.
Increasingly, he said, "teaching and schooling is treated as a service industry - we tell people how we want our lawn cut, how we want our hair cut and how we want our children educated." While it's positive to have parents more involved in their child's education, sometimes parents step on the toes of teachers and administrators, he said. One of the Sacramento Diocese's seven Catholic high schools, Loretto offers a rigorous academic program with an emphasis on social justice. Traditionally, the school's mission has been to instill Catholic values while pushing students to become independent thinkers. School officials have said they take pride in presenting all sides of an issue.
"The idea is to come to the right decisions based on faith," said Rebecca Williams, a University of California, San Diego, freshman who graduated from Loretto in the spring. "That doesn't mean you always have to agree with the church, but you have to always consider both sides." Williams said she understands the bishop has certain moral obligations, but is disappointed he would "align himself with someone who takes pictures of people walking into a clinic."
"What does that say about our church as a compassionate organization?" Williams asked.
At least three mornings a week, demonstrators gather in front of Sacramento-area Planned Parenthood clinics, many hoisting anti-abortion signs and shouting anti-abortion messages to clients and workers, said Katharyn McLearan, spokeswoman for the local chapter. As a volunteer, it was Bain's job to be a "friendly face" and help steer clients through the protesters, McLearan said. Sills first saw Bain during one of those morning rallies, according to the e-mail Sills wrote to administrators. Sills decided to alert the school after seeing Bain at a Loretto function in September.
Many at the school have kept quiet about Bain's firing - at least publicly. Calls to six Loretto teachers and the school principal were not returned. Timothy, who initially voiced support for Bain, has since referred all questions to Weigand's office. But debate is lively in cyberspace. Web sites ranging from "Bush vs. Choice" to "California High School Conservative" have weighed in.
Loretto sophomore Katelyn Sills, Wynette Sills' daughter, started a political blog in March and has written in support of the bishop's decision to fire Bain. A person "who volunteers at abortion clinics on days when the killing occurs is probably not the best candidate for a position at an all-girls Catholic high school," wrote Katelyn Sills, who did not respond to an e-mail seeking comment.
An classmate who wished to remain anonymous retorted on Sill's blog: "Many people at our school are pro-choice but do not think that abortion is the right answer. Should we with our beliefs be expelled from the school?"On a recent afternoon, Loretto students gabbed and listened to iPods in front of the school as they waited for rides home.
Kathryn Wahlberg, taking a break from after-school play practice, said she was in Bain's drama classes. She drafted a four-page letter that she plans to send to the bishop. Wahlberg said Bain was a "disciplined but fun" teacher who was "really good for students who are serious about acting." Regarding her termination, Wahlberg said, "It makes people think we don't tolerate people of opposite opinions. I don't think we're like that."
"What does that say about our church as a compassionate organization?" Williams asked.
A compassionate organization??? Has this girl, a graduate of this so-called prestigious Catholic High School, ever been exposed to the Catechism of the Catholic Church? is it more compassionate to sit quietly while babies are aborted and souls are damned? Should we stand by as these misguided people condemn themselves to an eternity in hell? Is that compassion?
I'm missing something -- why was Katelyn expelled?
There's no reason I can think of other than simple retaliation from the teaching staff or administrators. The problem begins at the top with principal Sister Helen Timothy (she's the well groomed transgender-ish one in the yellow suit). She fully supports Ms. Bain in all her resplendent disorder: “She is exceptional,” said the Sister, “Students thought very highly of her.”
It is not clear if they gave her a chance to quit quietly (for personal reasons) or gave her the bum's rush. She has a point. The school is so determined to be "fair" that they forget what ought to be the primary part of a Catholic school's missins statement, which is to teach Christian principles. The supreme court has not been very clear about the First Amendment, but it is clear about one thing. A school is not a university; it indoctrinates, it is not a place for free discussion, because its enrollees are seldom adults.
I have heard a lot on FR about people opposed to ID. They don't want it taught. Why would a school that is supposedly committed to the teaching of evolution want someone who does not believe in it?
From the cafeteria attitude of Loretto's administration, I can just imagine that Ms. Bain's termination must have been an event marked by tears, wailing, hugs, solidarity, support, and self-righteous speeches voicing disgust for that "Nazi Pope" who endangers the lives of women everywhere. I'll bet until that day, Ms. Bain had never known there could be such love from her liberal sisters.
What I mean is did they give her a chance do go quietly? Or did her liberal sisters let the cat out of the bag?
I'm not a Catholic, but I appreciate the Catholic Church's stand against abortion.
Hopefully, this school (and all staff) will continue its firm pro-life stand.
Huh? It's the job and duty of a Catholic Bishop to teach Catholics how to be Catholic.
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