A Kansas Catholic grade school has denied enrollment to a kindergarten student who is the child of a same-sex couple, The Kansas City Star is reporting.
Now, about 1,000 people have signed a petition asking that the decision by the St. Ann Catholic School in Prairie Village be reconsidered. The petition is addressed to Archbishop Joseph Naumann and school superintendent Kathy O’Hara. About half of those who signed the petition are members of St. Ann, according to the newspaper.
“Respectfully, we believe that the decision to deny a child of God access to such a wonderful community and education, based on the notion that his or her parent’s union is not in accordance with the church’s teaching in sacramental marriage, lacks the compassion and mercy of Christ’s message,” the petition reads.
But O’Hara, in a statement to the newspaper, replied that the “church’s teaching on marriage is clear and is not altered by the laws of civil society.”
Catholic doctrine recognizes marriage “as a sacrament entered into between a man and woman.”
And St. Ann’s pastor, the Rev. Craig Maxim, said the archdiocese had advised against accepting the child because the parents could not “model behaviors and attitudes consistent with the church’s teachings.”
The newspaper noted some dioceses in the U.S. allow children of same-sex parent. However, the local archdiocese ban applies to all of its schools.
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