The following are the closing comments by Deacon Mike Manno on the April 28 edition of Faith On Trial in reference to Dowling Catholic High School, West Des Moines:

 

I think we need to make a comment on this Dowling matter – and I make this from a very personal viewpoint, my father, who died 44 years ago this week, was on the committee that decided to build the New Dowling, in fact on his death bed he made his final donation to the school.

I was very proud of the school a few weeks ago when it stood on principle and refused to acquiesce in a staged event that challenged the school to hire a man who publically opposed Church teaching on sexuality and marriage.

At the time, I warned that this would not go away. And it hasn’t. Just last night students from Valley High School appeared before the West Des Moines School Board and demanded that Dowling be prohibited from playing its home games at Valley Stadium – the reason: Dowling’s discriminatory hiring policy.

However, over the weekend, Dowling authorized the creation of a gay-straight alliance at the school. That’s not what Dowling called it, but that is what the students who asked for it called it. The student organizers are making contact with the Iowa Pride Network, which celebrates sodomy and other sexual perversions that the Church has condemned since the time of the apostles. It is also affiliated with One Iowa, an organization that has pushed gay-marriage and is a force behind forcing bakers, photographers, florists and others to celebrate gay-marriages and fining and penalizing them if they do not, as we have just seen.

We have reported on these folks for almost two years. They have no respect for our religious liberties and their foot soldiers either by ignorance or design distort the teaching of the Church and turn our dogmas and beliefs into proofs of hate.

Authorizing the club was an act of false compassion. It dilutes our teaching and sends a mixed message to those who truly wish to follow the teachings of the Church. It also allows the camel’s nose into the tent.

We’ve seen this story before.

Let me know what you think at DeaconMike@IowaCatholicRadio.com.