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Sacramento Bishop: No Place in Catholic Schools for Abortion Supporters

See Update: Sacramento Catholic School Expels 15-year-old Student who Alerted Bishop to Abortion Activist Teacher http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2005/nov/05110208.html

By John-Henry Westen

SACRAMENTO, November 1, 2005 (LifeSiteNews.com) - The uproar created when, on October 5, Bishop William K. Weigand directed a Catholic school to dismiss drama teacher Marie Bain after she was discovered to be an escort for a Planned Parenthood abortion center, has been used by the  bishop as a teachable moment.  The bishop issued a message to the faithful on October 26 in which he explained his actions in light of Catholic teaching on the sanctity of life.

The Bishop's October 5 letter to the school stated, "I am directing you, under the provisions of Code of Canon Law ... to dismiss Ms. Bain with all deliberate speed."

The move came thanks to the efforts of a 15-year-old student at the Loretto High School who says she owes her pro-life convictions to a project she did in her freshman year. Katelyn Sills, 15, has taken part in pro-life rallies outside the Sacramento-area Planned Parenthood abortuary with her family.  And when at school she noted an uncanny resemblance between one of the escorts at the abortion center and a teacher, she mentioned it to her mother Wynette Sills. 

Her mother took photos of Bain escorting women into the abortion center and sent them in an email to Bishop Weigand September 19.  In the email, the elder Sills said, "If the identification is verified, clearly this individual cannot be a part of the Loretto staff."

After Bain was dismissed by the school on October 13, Katelyn noted on her blog that some at the school disagreed with the Bishop's directive.  She defended the move saying of Bain, "A person that thinks that parents should not be notified about their minor daughter having an abortion and 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."

In the letter to the faithful, Bishop Weigand explained, that the media hyped controversy "Transpiring during October, 'Respect Life' month," has "presented the people of our Diocese with an opportunity to reflect upon the centrality of the Gospel of Life to our Catholic faith and to recall the fundamental purpose and mission of the Catholic educational apostolate in the life of our Church."

"If we are to form faithful Catholic young people and provide suitable role models for such formation, teachers in our Catholic schools must themselves be witnesses to the Truth proclaimed in the Gospel, conducting themselves by word and deed in accordance with the Truths of our Faith," writes the Bishop. "Their witness does not end when the school bell rings at the end of the day or the school year concludes at the beginning of summer."

Bishop Weigand also notes that "persons who engage in activities fundamentally opposed to the teachings and beliefs of our Faith are disqualified from collaborating in the educational apostolate of the Church as principals, teachers, teacher's aides, or catechists. To this end, any person who has actively and publicly advocated or participated in activities contrary to the Gospel of Life, such as supporting or promoting abortion, lacks the threshold qualifications essential to minister to our young people in the Catholic educational apostolate."

The letter concludes, "There is no place for such persons in the Catholic educational system in the Diocese of Sacramento. This has been, and continues to be, the policy of the Diocese and, as such, is reflected in the employment materials and contracts received by all Diocesan Catholic school teachers."

See the Bishop's full letter online:
http://www.diocese-sacramento.org/bishops/PDF%20Files/Loretto%20and%20Marie%20Ba...

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