Regarding their public letter of criticism against Salvatore Joseph Cordileone, Archbishop of San Francisco, California
I was appalled to read in the Los Angeles Times that you seven California legislators have written to urge Archbishop Cordileone “to withdraw the ‘morality clauses’ he unveiled this month in a handbook for high school teachers, and to reverse his intention to redefine teachers as ‘ministers’ in their employment contracts.” (Lee Romney, “Lawmakers urge S.F. archbishop to withdraw teacher morality clauses,” 2-17-15)
If this had been a private letter from you, your opinion, however malformed, would be understandable.
As representatives of the government, writing on government stationery, however, interference with Church matters takes on quite another color.
I - a Catholic living in another state - feel threatened by your letter. Will other legislators follow your precedent? Will they also decide that their private opinions about adultery, masturbation, fornication, the viewing of pornography, homosexual relations, artificial-reproductive technology, contraception, and abortion are of such consideration that it is appropriate for them to request Catholic teaching be silenced?
Your presumption that the Archbishop’s LEGAL acts must be stopped is intimidating. What steps will you take when your request to be less “discriminatory” against “the values that define the Bay Area and its history” go unheeded? Will you work to suppress the Church? Will you attempt to create a “patriotic” church front that is actually nothing more than a mouthpiece for government propaganda?
Up until now, Catholics in the United States have enjoyed a protected right to hold Catholic doctrine. Catholic bishops have a right (and a duty) to see that authentic Catholic doctrine is taught in their schools. If you have a problem with that doctrine, don’t send your children there.
Viva Cristo Rey! Long live Christ the King!
Stephanie Block, editor Catholic Media Coalition
(ed. note: Block is a Spero News columnist)
Here follows the full text of the letter:
February 17, 2015
The Most Reverend Salvatore Cordileone
Archbishop of the Diocese of San Francisco
1 Peter Yorke Way
San Francisco, California 94109
Dear Archbishop Cordileone:
We the undersigned urge you to withdraw new conditions for employment at four archdiocesan-administered Catholic high schools in the Bay Area because they conflict with settled areas of law and foment a discriminatory environment in the communities we serve.
The morality clauses that you recently added to the 2015-2016 faculty handbook, set to take effect on August 1, outline expansive conditions on the professional, public, and private lives of every school employee. For that reason, we question the purpose of reclassifying all employees as “ministers” through ongoing collective bargaining because it effectively removes civil rights protections guaranteed to all Californians. Among these rights are the freedom to choose who to love and marry, how to plan a family, and what causes or beliefs to support through freedom of speech and association. The narrow exception for “ministers” in federal anti-discrimination law was never intended to be a tool for discrimination. This sends an alarming message of intolerance to youth educated at Sacred Heart Cathedral Preparatory and Archbishop Riordan in San Francisco, Junipero Serra in San Mateo, and Marin Catholic in Kentfield.
Although your position wields discretion over working conditions at schools affiliated with the Catholic Church, the standards within the morality clauses would be illegal for any another employer. Your proposal goes beyond regulating behavior in the workplace and infringes upon the personal freedoms of your employees. It strikes a divisive tone, which stands in stark contrast to the values that define the Bay Area and its history. We are known and beloved around the world for our celebration of diversity, our political activism, and our unwavering commitment to ensure that all people may live with dignity as equals.
The impacted high schools have deep roots in our history, dating back to the establishment of Sacred Heart Cathedral Preparatory in 1852. These schools are locally revered institutions because they have educated generations of leaders. The expansive morality clauses imposed onto faculty jeopardize the future of this legacy by undermining the capacity of these schools to attract and retain the best educators. If that were to occur, everyone loses.
If left in place, the morality clauses will serve a counterproductive purpose. We urge you to reconsider and withdraw them for the best interests of the schools, the students, and the communities we all serve. We would be happy to meet with you to discuss these issues further. Thank you for your consideration of our views.
Sincerely,
PHIL TING
Assemblymember, 19th District
RICHARD GORDON
Assemblymember, 24th District
DAVID CHIU
Assemblymember, 17th District
MARC LEVINE
Assemblymember, 10th District
KEVIN MULLIN
Assemblymember, 22nd District
MARK LENO
Senator, 11th District
JERRY HILL
Senator, 13th District
MIKE MCGUIRE
Senator, 2nd District
CONTACT: Anthony Matthews (Ting), tel. (916) 319-2019
Susan Kennedy (Mullin), cell (925) 437-2510
Spero News columnist Stephanie Block edits the New Mexico-based Los Pequeños newspaper and is the author of the four-volume Change Agents: Alinskyian Organizing Among Religious Bodies, which is available at Amazon.
The views and opinions expressed herein are those of the author only, not of Spero News.
