xrayzebra
10-23-2006, 09:03 AM
Okay, I have a question. You are a queer, male or female, and decide to go
to a college/university that is religious based. Should they be required to
bend to your lifestyle or do you conform/respect their core beliefs.
And why should they bend to the queers lifestyle, since the queer could
have choose any number of colleges that would have been more than happy
to accommodate their lifestyle.
Now read the following article that was in today's E-N.
Gays, lesbians asking how they fit in at Our Lady of the Lake
Web Posted: 10/23/2006 03:06 AM CDT
Melissa Ludwig
Martin Trevino is openly gay. He knows that is unacceptable to many of his fellow students at Our Lady of the Lake University, a private Catholic school on the West Side.
In spite of that — or perhaps because of it — Trevino wants to create a university-sanctioned gay/straight alliance to educate students and faculty about gay issues and to give gays and lesbians a voice on campus. The issue has sparked discussion about whether universities with Catholic moorings should support gay groups, given that the church teaches homosexual sex is wrong.
"It's part of our education to be able to work with a diverse population," said Trevino, a 42-year-old social work student. "If it is acceptable to take our money, it should be acceptable to be who we are."
Howard Benoist, executive vice president for OLLU, said he would work with Trevino on the approval process, which includes drawing up a charter that must conform to the university's Catholic mission.
"The campus policy is no discrimination and support for everybody," Benoist said. "We make a distinction between the lifestyle and the student. We want to be supportive of the students no matter what their views."
Jeffrey Skilling
Question: Should OLLU allow gay organizations on campus?
The request comes at a time when Catholic universities around the nation are struggling with the clash between modern culture and religious values. About 50 Catholic institutions have student organizations for some combination of gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, questioning or intersex (having both sexual organs) students. Locally, St. Mary's University and the University of the Incarnate Word are not among those.
Other colleges have drawn fire for hosting "The Vagina Monologues," a play that includes a depiction of a sexual encounter between a young girl and a woman.
"This is a real issue and our church is grappling with it," said Michael Galligan-Stierle, vice president of the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities in Washington, D.C. "There are 100 opinions today about what it means to be Catholic. Young adults should be talking these things through and figuring out where their values are."
Quietly out
In Professor Cynthia Medina's office at the Worden School of Social Service, an OLLU handbook sits on her shelf, a bright yellow Post-it Note stuck to the section outlining goals for general education. Learn to respect others, quash discrimination, it says. She whips it out when colleagues criticize her efforts to raise awareness of gay issues.
"I really take that seriously," she said of the handbook's goals.
Medina has helped organize on-campus events to discuss gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, questioning and intersex issues, and in August she put on a training session for student mentors. In her classes, she tackles minority relations and has compiled a resource manual on those issues.
It's awkward for students to confront their feelings about homosexuality, Medina said, but they leave her class and training sessions with more compassion for gays and lesbians.
She thinks the campus is ripe for a gay/straight alliance.
"I think the students are interested and the university is ready," Medina said.
Jane Grovijahn, chairwoman of the religious studies department, agreed.
"People here are quietly out," Grovijahn said. "There is no great visibility. We are at exactly the right place to begin looking at these issues."
Both professors expect some resistance from faculty and students.
Aaron Miller, a 26-year-old English major, opposes the idea of a gay/straight alliance.
"Students may express individual views in contrast to Church teaching," Miller said. "But they may not formally organize against (the Church's) instruction."
If other universities' experience holds true, administrators also will hear from alumni, donors and outside groups complaining that Catholicism has gone soft.
The Cardinal Newman Society, a Manassas, Va.-based nonprofit that pushes for what it deems a stronger Catholic identity at colleges, published a report in 2003 claiming Catholic universities were leading students astray.
The report cites a survey done by the Higher Education Research Institute at 38 Catholic colleges showing graduating seniors predominantly favor abortion rights and homosexual marriage and only occasionally pray or attend religious services.
The report quoted David House, president of St. Joseph's College of Maine, as saying: "To present Church teaching at a Catholic college as neutral or as one of many offerings in the cafeteria of belief systems is more than just weak. It's wrong."
The society also has successfully fought productions of "The Vagina Monologues" on numerous Catholic campuses. This year, University of Notre Dame's president required the campus' Queer Film Festival to change its name and banned fundraising for a performance of "The Vagina Monologues."
"There are organizations that launch campaigns against universities they think are not Catholic enough," said Denise Mattson, a spokeswoman for DePaul University in Chicago.
In January, DePaul became the first Catholic school in the country to offer a minor in queer studies.
"It is a bold move; you are going to put yourself up for criticism," Mattson said of DePaul's decision. "But we have to be true to our mission and beliefs, and we believe in social justice and equality. Gay people deserve to be treated like other people."
'Always Our Children'
Catholicism deems homosexual sex immoral and encourages gays and lesbians to remain chaste. But many forget that it also teaches acceptance and compassion, said Grovijahn and other religious leaders, including a spokesman for the Archdiocese of San Antonio.
They point to " Always Our Children," a pastoral message from the Bishops' Committee on Marriage and Family to the parents of homosexual children.
According to the letter: "Homosexual orientation is experienced as a given, not as something freely chosen. By itself, therefore, a homosexual orientation cannot be considered sinful."
It goes on to challenge all Christians and citizens to "confront their own fears about homosexuality" and "strive to eliminate any forms of injustice, oppression, or violence" against gays and lesbians.
Other universities have cited those teachings in allowing gay student organizations, often with the caveat that members follow Catholic teachings and stay true to the school's religious identity.
Despite that call to compassion, gays and lesbians still encounter contempt and even violence in society, Grovijahn said.
"The ability to even talk about these things out loud is really quite new in our culture," said Father Bernard Lee, vice president for mission and identity at St. Mary's University. "When a delicate topic comes up culturally, it is really clumsy for a while."
Francisco Vara-Orta, a recent St. Mary's graduate who edited the student newspaper, said gay and lesbian students often gathered on a word-of-mouth basis but were afraid to go public.
"It's a pretty hard issue, so most students stayed in the closet," Vara-Orta said. "Conservatives are vocal and feel like they have the Bible on their side. It's kind of intimidating."
Lee said if faculty and students think it would be helpful, a gay student organization would be "a right and good thing to do."
"If we have to explain ourselves to our wider constituencies, we do it," Lee said. "That is part of education."
[email protected]
Online at: http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/metro/stories/MYSA102306.01A.OLLUGAY.306a121.html
================================================== ======
I have one other question. What is there to understand about a persons
sexual preference? Do hetrosexuals need groups to focus on their
lifestyle? Would one even be allowed on any campus?
to a college/university that is religious based. Should they be required to
bend to your lifestyle or do you conform/respect their core beliefs.
And why should they bend to the queers lifestyle, since the queer could
have choose any number of colleges that would have been more than happy
to accommodate their lifestyle.
Now read the following article that was in today's E-N.
Gays, lesbians asking how they fit in at Our Lady of the Lake
Web Posted: 10/23/2006 03:06 AM CDT
Melissa Ludwig
Martin Trevino is openly gay. He knows that is unacceptable to many of his fellow students at Our Lady of the Lake University, a private Catholic school on the West Side.
In spite of that — or perhaps because of it — Trevino wants to create a university-sanctioned gay/straight alliance to educate students and faculty about gay issues and to give gays and lesbians a voice on campus. The issue has sparked discussion about whether universities with Catholic moorings should support gay groups, given that the church teaches homosexual sex is wrong.
"It's part of our education to be able to work with a diverse population," said Trevino, a 42-year-old social work student. "If it is acceptable to take our money, it should be acceptable to be who we are."
Howard Benoist, executive vice president for OLLU, said he would work with Trevino on the approval process, which includes drawing up a charter that must conform to the university's Catholic mission.
"The campus policy is no discrimination and support for everybody," Benoist said. "We make a distinction between the lifestyle and the student. We want to be supportive of the students no matter what their views."
Jeffrey Skilling
Question: Should OLLU allow gay organizations on campus?
The request comes at a time when Catholic universities around the nation are struggling with the clash between modern culture and religious values. About 50 Catholic institutions have student organizations for some combination of gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, questioning or intersex (having both sexual organs) students. Locally, St. Mary's University and the University of the Incarnate Word are not among those.
Other colleges have drawn fire for hosting "The Vagina Monologues," a play that includes a depiction of a sexual encounter between a young girl and a woman.
"This is a real issue and our church is grappling with it," said Michael Galligan-Stierle, vice president of the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities in Washington, D.C. "There are 100 opinions today about what it means to be Catholic. Young adults should be talking these things through and figuring out where their values are."
Quietly out
In Professor Cynthia Medina's office at the Worden School of Social Service, an OLLU handbook sits on her shelf, a bright yellow Post-it Note stuck to the section outlining goals for general education. Learn to respect others, quash discrimination, it says. She whips it out when colleagues criticize her efforts to raise awareness of gay issues.
"I really take that seriously," she said of the handbook's goals.
Medina has helped organize on-campus events to discuss gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, questioning and intersex issues, and in August she put on a training session for student mentors. In her classes, she tackles minority relations and has compiled a resource manual on those issues.
It's awkward for students to confront their feelings about homosexuality, Medina said, but they leave her class and training sessions with more compassion for gays and lesbians.
She thinks the campus is ripe for a gay/straight alliance.
"I think the students are interested and the university is ready," Medina said.
Jane Grovijahn, chairwoman of the religious studies department, agreed.
"People here are quietly out," Grovijahn said. "There is no great visibility. We are at exactly the right place to begin looking at these issues."
Both professors expect some resistance from faculty and students.
Aaron Miller, a 26-year-old English major, opposes the idea of a gay/straight alliance.
"Students may express individual views in contrast to Church teaching," Miller said. "But they may not formally organize against (the Church's) instruction."
If other universities' experience holds true, administrators also will hear from alumni, donors and outside groups complaining that Catholicism has gone soft.
The Cardinal Newman Society, a Manassas, Va.-based nonprofit that pushes for what it deems a stronger Catholic identity at colleges, published a report in 2003 claiming Catholic universities were leading students astray.
The report cites a survey done by the Higher Education Research Institute at 38 Catholic colleges showing graduating seniors predominantly favor abortion rights and homosexual marriage and only occasionally pray or attend religious services.
The report quoted David House, president of St. Joseph's College of Maine, as saying: "To present Church teaching at a Catholic college as neutral or as one of many offerings in the cafeteria of belief systems is more than just weak. It's wrong."
The society also has successfully fought productions of "The Vagina Monologues" on numerous Catholic campuses. This year, University of Notre Dame's president required the campus' Queer Film Festival to change its name and banned fundraising for a performance of "The Vagina Monologues."
"There are organizations that launch campaigns against universities they think are not Catholic enough," said Denise Mattson, a spokeswoman for DePaul University in Chicago.
In January, DePaul became the first Catholic school in the country to offer a minor in queer studies.
"It is a bold move; you are going to put yourself up for criticism," Mattson said of DePaul's decision. "But we have to be true to our mission and beliefs, and we believe in social justice and equality. Gay people deserve to be treated like other people."
'Always Our Children'
Catholicism deems homosexual sex immoral and encourages gays and lesbians to remain chaste. But many forget that it also teaches acceptance and compassion, said Grovijahn and other religious leaders, including a spokesman for the Archdiocese of San Antonio.
They point to " Always Our Children," a pastoral message from the Bishops' Committee on Marriage and Family to the parents of homosexual children.
According to the letter: "Homosexual orientation is experienced as a given, not as something freely chosen. By itself, therefore, a homosexual orientation cannot be considered sinful."
It goes on to challenge all Christians and citizens to "confront their own fears about homosexuality" and "strive to eliminate any forms of injustice, oppression, or violence" against gays and lesbians.
Other universities have cited those teachings in allowing gay student organizations, often with the caveat that members follow Catholic teachings and stay true to the school's religious identity.
Despite that call to compassion, gays and lesbians still encounter contempt and even violence in society, Grovijahn said.
"The ability to even talk about these things out loud is really quite new in our culture," said Father Bernard Lee, vice president for mission and identity at St. Mary's University. "When a delicate topic comes up culturally, it is really clumsy for a while."
Francisco Vara-Orta, a recent St. Mary's graduate who edited the student newspaper, said gay and lesbian students often gathered on a word-of-mouth basis but were afraid to go public.
"It's a pretty hard issue, so most students stayed in the closet," Vara-Orta said. "Conservatives are vocal and feel like they have the Bible on their side. It's kind of intimidating."
Lee said if faculty and students think it would be helpful, a gay student organization would be "a right and good thing to do."
"If we have to explain ourselves to our wider constituencies, we do it," Lee said. "That is part of education."
[email protected]
Online at: http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/metro/stories/MYSA102306.01A.OLLUGAY.306a121.html
================================================== ======
I have one other question. What is there to understand about a persons
sexual preference? Do hetrosexuals need groups to focus on their
lifestyle? Would one even be allowed on any campus?