“[Being a lesbian] had nothing to do with my ability to teach and coach. I don’t think I’m immoral; I don’t think I’ve done anything that’s unethical.”Other teachers have sued Christian schools for being fired over immorality issues, but the U.S. Supreme Court ruling over President Obama's DOJ gives churches freedom to fire & hire.
-- Carla Hale to the media
Remember the assurance from Pope Benedict XVI: Public Opinion Won't Liberalize the Church and also read that Pope Francis I Says the Gay Agenda is Work of the Devil
-- From "Diocese affirms need for Catholic fidelity after teacher fired" posted at Catholic News Agency 4/26/13
Speaking “in general terms,” the diocese said in a statement, all Catholic school personnel agree at the beginning of their employment to “abide by the rules, regulations, and policies of the Catholic Diocese, including respecting the moral values advanced by the teachings of Christ.”
“The Catholic Church respects the fundamental dignity of all persons but also must insist that those in its employ respect the tenets of the Church,” the diocese continued. “Personnel who choose to publicly espouse relationships or principles that are contrary to the teachings of the Catholic Church cannot, ultimately, remain in the employ of the Church.”
In 2008, the city [of Columbus] passed an ordinance barring discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. However, according to the NBC TV affiliate WCMH, the school’s principal explained to Hale that her termination was not due to the fact that she was a lesbian, but because she had was a relationship with another woman, an action that violates Church teaching.
Morals clauses have been invoked to end the employment of heterosexual teachers at Catholic schools as well.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Columbus Diocese Takes Heat for Firing Lesbian Teacher" by Peter Jesserer Smith, National Catholic Register 4/25/13
“The Catholic diocese is facing a situation where simply living according to its long-held, very open and very public religious beliefs could somehow be a crime in the city of Columbus. That’s very disconcerting,” Daniel Blomberg, legal counsel with the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, told the Register. The Becket Fund is a Washington-based law firm that specializes in cases involving religious liberty, but it is not representing the Columbus Diocese at this time.
Blomberg said the Columbus anti-discrimination ordinance goes far beyond standard federal and state non-discrimination laws by imposing criminal penalties on employers, especially religious employers who “might require a statement of belief regarding marriage and family that some might find offensive.”
Blomberg said the law was “unclear” as to whether Bishop Campbell and other diocesan personnel would be liable for jail time or fines.
An agreement between the diocese and its teachers' union, the Central Ohio Association of Catholic Educators (COACE), states that the diocese has the right to terminate an employee’s contract “at any time” for engaging in “immorality, for serious unethical conduct or for willful and/or persistent violations of reasonable regulations” set by the school or diocese.
Diocesan policy also states that employees “are expected to be examples of moral behavior and professionalism” in keeping with “the tenets of the Catholic Church.”
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Furor over gay teacher’s firing may pit city of Columbus against Roman Catholic diocese" by Kirsten Andersen, LifeSiteNews 4/22/13
Now, Hale wants her job back. She has filed a grievance with the teachers’ union, and her lawyer, Thomas Tootle, told the Columbus Dispatch that if Hale’s union grievance does not succeed, her next step will be to sue under the city’s anti-discrimination law.
That means the diocesan officials who fired Hale may soon face legal action from the city of Columbus, fines, and possibly even jail time.
Hale’s is the latest in a series of firings of Catholic school teachers who have publicly opposed Church teaching on homosexuality. Another Ohio Catholic high school teacher, Mike Moroski of Cincinnati, was let go in February after posting on his blog that he supports same-sex “marriage.” Rather than fight the diocese, Morski launched a political career. Al Fischer, an openly homosexual music teacher in St. Louis, was fired from a Catholic school and church last year after announcing he was traveling to New York to “marry” his same-sex partner.
. . . As of this writing, more than 40,000 people have signed an online petition demanding the Diocese of Columbus reinstate Hale’s employment and issue a public apology.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
Also read President Obama Redefines 1st Amendment Freedom of Religion as well as Obama's National Cathedral is the Seat of Apostasy
Rightfully, Catholic Bishops Slam Obama: Criminal in Eyes of God
It comes down to Religious Liberty vs. Anti-Christian Totalitarianism in America
