The backlash to the bishops’ sexual education programme was eminently predictable, writes Ruadhán Jones
Back in 2015, shortly before the passing of the Marriage Referendum which legalised gay marriage in Ireland, then Education Minister Jan O’Sullivan promised school curriculum would not be changed in the event of the Constitutional redefinition of marriage. She said: “Currently we have legislation that protects the ethos of religious schools, and they are allowed under the law to protect that ethos in their schools. Now, there is no intention of changing any curriculum.”
Mr Varadkar’s statements were vague, to say the least, but a warning nonetheless”
At the time, the Iona Institute released a statement that the minister’s promise was “almost worthless”. Now, we know that it was absolutely worthless, as first opposition TDs and now Tánaiste Leo Varadkar have suggested Catholic teaching regarding marriage will no longer be welcome in schools. This was all part of a backlash to a new Relationship and Sexual Education (RSE) programme for primary schools from the Irish Catholic bishops, entitled Flourish.
Statements
Mr Varadkar’s statements were vague, to say the least, but a warning nonetheless. Responding to a question from Social Democrat TD Róisín Shorthall, on the Church and sexual education in schools, he said: “We need to make a statement on it because the programme for Government is very clear that when it comes to this matter it has to be inclusive of LGBTI relationships.”
Fact-based
It is not as though the Flourish programme is the “full, unexpurgated” total of Catholic teaching, as David Quinn has pointed out in this paper (April 29). But any opportunity is a good one when it comes to driving the Church out of education. The Social Democrats have been especially vocal in this regard, arguing that sexual education should be fact-based – and that “facts don’t have an ethos”.
This is obvious nonsense, as was proved when their press release then went on to propose how neatly the facts matched their own ethos, but it does show the blindness of those who shape our education policies. They do not realise, or at least do not admit, that they are seeking to replace the Church’s ethos with another.
However, a sacramental marriage is different to a legal marriage”
That ethos is one many parents still desire. Clár Ní Cheallacháin, a Catholic teacher and parent, told The Irish Catholic that “as a parent, I chose a Catholic school for my children to attend and I want their RSE education to be in line with the school’s Catholic ethos”. She compared it to “parents who choose, say, a French school would want/expect the school to teach all things French, while respecting other languages and cultures”.
Respect
She added that “all LGBTQI+ persons should be treated with respect and we should actively work to prevent all forms of unjust discrimination against them”, but also that Catholic teaching on the nature of marriage as a heterosexual union is fundamental. “Legally a person may marry another person of the same sex,” she said. “However, a sacramental marriage is different to a legal marriage. It is a union between two baptised people, one man and one woman, for life.”
For how much longer will the Government allow such teachings to remain in schools?
