VANCOUVER, British Columbia (LifeSiteNews) – A high school in Vancouver has placed restrictions on a Grade 11 student’s Catholic Club after the school board was inundated with complaints.
Last month, Eric Hamber Secondary School in Vancouver placed restrictions on Grade 11 student Timothy Que’s Catholic club aimed at teaching and promoting the authentic Catholic faith, after the school’s board was hit with a barrage of complaints following an interview he did to promote his new club. While Que’s pro-Catholic club has been limited because it promotes “a particular religion,” other ideological groups, such as pro-LGBTQ groups, remain unaffected.
According to Que, the new regulations imposed on his group prohibit him from explicitly teaching or promoting the Catholic faith, but instead must be limited to “socialization” and “general discussions” surrounding the topic of Catholicism.
The reason for the regulations, per the director of communications at the Vancouver School Board (VSB), Patricia MacNeil, is because Section 76 of the B.C. School Act “states that schools must be conducted on strictly secular and non-sectarian principles,” and that “no religious dogma or creed is to be taught in a school.”
In effect, this means “districts cannot promote a particular religion but that they can certainly teach about religion,” she explained to the B.C. Catholic.
However, according to a B.C. Ministry of Education spokesperson, “there is no provincial policy that sets rules for school clubs. It is up to local school districts to set rules for clubs.”
“It’s disappointing,” Que told the B.C. Catholic. “All I really wanted to do is to just teach Catholic teaching.”
“People were really mad,” he stated. “It’s been kind of crazy. I didn’t expect it to be this bad.”
One of the complaints against Que’s club came from Patti Bacchus, a former VSB chair, who tweeted, “I’m pretty sure this does not comply with the B.C. School Act or district policy.” Her tweet was met with support from other users who added statements like, “I sure hope not. No place for religion in our public schools,” and, “This is organized religion using its political weight to infest public schools.”
According to Que, his desire was not “to do something such as going into the halls and preach,” but rather, he just wanted to be able to evangelize his peers if they joined his club and expressed they were “interested in Catholicism or open to changing their mind.”
The sanctions placed on his club have sparked controversy in the local Catholic community, as other ideologically driven clubs, such as LGBTQ clubs, are given free reign to pursue their activities and interests, while Que’s religious group is not.
Que’s pastor at Holy Name of Jesus Parish, Father Rodney Nootebos, called the board’s decision “ridiculous” while adding “and yet, I’m not surprised, as well, which is kind of sad.”
Despite other clubs being allowed to promulgate their “ideology” Nootebos lamented, “And yet you cannot have a club that is devoted to something that is precious and integral to many peoples’ daily life.”
“I think it’s an absurdity and very sad.”