Students are angry their elite Melbourne high school published a notice in its newsletter urging parents to vote against gay marriage.
St Peter’s College in Cranbourne included two notes from local St Agatha’s Catholic parish, one written by its priest Father Joseph Abutu.
‘Soon you will be receiving ballot papers to vote on “same-sex marriage”,’ he wrote at the end of a paragraph about children receiving their first communion.
Students are angry their elite Catholic Melbourne high school St Peter’s College published a notice in its newsletter urging parents to vote against gay marriage in postal vote
‘I would strongly encourage you to vote NO, to keep marriage between a man and a woman.’
A longer column credited to the parish generically included a whole paragraph about the upcoming postal vote, explaining the date votes needed to be sent back.
‘Vote No, to keep marriage as a unique relationship between a woman and a man,’ it said at the end of the paragraph.
The column also included a section inviting parents to a letter writing campaign against assisted dying legislation being debated in NSW.
‘I would strongly encourage you to vote NO, to keep marriage between a man and a woman,’ local parish priest Father Joseph Abutu wrote
A longer column credited to the parish generically (right) included a whole paragraph about the upcoming postal vote, explaining the date votes needed to be sent back
‘This is your chance to have your say and to stand up for life!’ it said.
Students were outraged that their school would take a political position, saying it was ‘disgusting and very upsetting’ and made them feel ‘unsafe and unwelcome’.
‘This has led to a great divide in the school,’ one student told 9 News.
‘I believe it is highly inappropriate for the school to be publishing a political issue on a public platform.
‘Justice needs to be served for those who now fear coming to school knowing that they are not welcomed and supported.’
St Peter’s principal Chris Black described the school as a ‘proudly Catholic Community with a focus on Christ at the centre of our learning’
Students were outraged that their school would take a political position, saying it was ‘disgusting and very upsetting’ and made them feel ‘unsafe and unwelcome’
St Peter’s principal Chris Black described the school as a ‘proudly Catholic Community with a focus on Christ at the centre of our learning’.
‘As a Catholic school we have a strong belief in the dignity of each child in our care, because each one of us is made in the image of God,’ he wrote.
The school’s website reads: ‘We recognise the dignity of each person and provide a caring and supportive environment for each student to develop to their full potential.’
St Peter’s newsletter is in stark contrast to two other prestigious Catholic schools, St Ignatius’ College in Sydney and Xavier College in Melbourne.
Father Chris Middleton, the rector of Xavier, called on the Church to look on the huge amount of support among the youth for marriage equality.
Father Chris Middleton, the rector of Xavier Colege in Melbourne, called on the Church to look on the huge amount of support among the youth for marriage equality
St Ignatius’ rector Father Ross Jones argued Catholic couples can ‘in good conscience’ have sexual relationships for reasons besides procreation
‘In my experience, there is almost total unanimity amongst the young in favour of same-sex marriage, and arguments against will have almost no impact on them,’ he wrote.
He added that young people were driven by a ‘strong emotional commitment to equality’ – which he said was something to respect and admire.
St Ignatius’ rector Father Ross Jones argued Catholic couples can ‘in good conscience’ have sexual relationships for reasons besides procreation under the ‘order of reason’ school of Natural Law.
‘Presumably, same-sex couples, who make such a commitment to each other in good conscience, do so by reflecting on experience and on what it is to be human, using their God-given reason,’ he wrote.