News & Analysis

UPDATE:  MONDAY APRIL 30, 2012

Thanks to a list minute outcry from faithful Catholics and other concerned ratepayers, the Waterloo Catholic school board has deemed trustee Piscitelli's dissident motion "inadmissible". 

However, danger still remains.  An eye-brow raising statement made by Piscitelli in this morning's Waterloo Region Record newspaper signals that he may continue to agitate for the bishops' anti-bullying support groups to function as homosexual-activist clubs, even if the GSA name is not permitted.

The Record reported, "Although he is withdrawing the motion, Piscitelli said he hopes that the Catholic board’s models will nevertheless try to emulate, as much as possible, the successful model of the gay-straight alliances to reduce bullying".

Another reason why attendance at tonight's 6:00pm Board meeting is still necessary is because Piscitelli stated on his blog yesterday that homosexual issues will still be discussed at the meeting.  He posted: "While this means a decision on the issue of GSAs will not take place on Monday, the agenda includes a presentation reviewing the supports the WCDSB is currently providing for LGBTQ youth in our system".

Please attend the meeting to show that ratepayers are serious about blocking all actions that would undermine Catholic moral teaching:  WCDSB, 35 Weber St, Kitchener, (map)

Be prepared - Know your facts

A tactic Piscitelli (and gay lobby organizations) has been using to obtain sympathy for his GSA agenda, is to claim that same-sex attracted students are at the greatest risk due to bullying.

This assertion is actually not supportable by any credible evidence. The Toronto District School Board (TDSB) and other studies have repeatedly found that physical appearance/body image is the number one reason why students are bullied at school. 'Sexual orientation' did not even rank at all as a cause of school bullying, in the study commissioned by the TDSB.

Out of love for all students, we support efforts to reduce bullying for any reason it may occur. However, we must challenge non-factual assertions that have a political agenda.

BACKGROUND

A trustee at the Waterloo Catholic School Board has set a date of April 30 2012 for when he will openly defy the written directives of Ontario's Catholic bishops. These directives prohibit openly-homosexual student clubs, known as Gay-Straight Alliances (GSAs), from being set up in Catholic schools. 

GSAs have been criticized by faithful Catholics and pro-family leaders as a type of gay pride club, possessing a socio-political agenda which is fundamentally opposed to Catholic moral teaching on human sexuality.

Anthony Piscitelli, a trustee for Kitchener/Wilmot, posted the YouTube video below in which he explains the planned rebellion. Piscitelli says: "At the next Waterloo Catholic District School Board (WCDSB) meeting I will be calling upon my fellow trustees to support a motion calling for every high school in our system to be allowed to create Gay-Straight Alliances".   UPDATE: Piscitelli took this video offline around 5:00pm Friday. The Board must be getting heat. Keep up the pressure!

His motion needs to be rejected with the utmost ferocity. The bishops co-wrote a document called RESPECTING DIFFERENCE, with the Ontario Catholic School Trustees Association (OCSTA),  which expressly prohibits GSAs in Catholic schools stating, "GSA clubs, per se, are not acceptable in Catholic schools".  

OCSTA released RESPECTING DIFFERENCE (RD) on January 26. The bishops have requested that it be followed as the framework for anti-bullying clubs in all catholic schools. The RD framework is very solid and prohibits all forms of gay-activism, or self-identification with LGBTTIQ labels, while at the same time, providing much needed support to all victims of bullying, including those who may have a perceived same-sex attraction. To read an analysis of the Bishops' RESPECTING DIFFERENCE framework click here. The analysis was prepared by Campaign Life Catholics, a division of CLC.

Erroneous statement attributed to Catholic doctrine

In his video Piscitelli makes a false claim that "The Catholic Church recognizes that some individuals are born gay". In fact, the Catholic Church has never given credence to the "born gay" theory. There is no Vatican document which asserts this popular claim of the gay lobby. In fact, there is no scientific proof that people are born 'gay'.  This false, unsupportable claim misrepresents Catholic teaching. It must be be retracted by Mr. Piscitelli.  To learn why the "born gay" claim has no basis in science, click here.
 

False allegation against Catholics who are faithful to the magisterium of the Catholic Church

In the video, Piscitelli falsely insinuates that Catholics who believe in the Church's teaching that "Homosexual persons are called to chastity" (Catechism, para 2359), are compelled to "ostracize" same-sex attracted students. That is absurd.  Kids bully other kids because they are mean, not because they're faithful Christians.
 

TAKE ACTION TO STOP THIS DISOBEDIENCE AGAINST THE BISHOPS' DIRECTIVE

1. Contact all trustees at the WCDSB. Urge them to disallow this motion and to issue a correction about the "born gay" claim attributed to Church doctrine.

2. Attend the Trustee Board Meeting on Monday, April 30th at 6:00 pm. Respecfully show your opposition to the motion. Arrive early to mingle with trustees and share your concerns. It is essential that faithful Catholics attend this meeting. The gay lobby is very organized and will likely stack the gallery with gay-activists, in order to pressure trustees to support the motion.
     Catholic Education Centre
     35 Weber St. W., -- Unit A
     Kitchener, ON, Canada
     N2H 3Z1

3. Contact the Director of Education at the WCDSB.
     Rick Boisvert, T:519-578-3660,  Email: [email protected]

4. Contact the local bishop for the diocese of Hamilton.
          Most Rev. Douglas Crosby
          Diocese of Hamilton
          700 King Street West
          Hamilton, ON, L8P 1C7
          T: 905-528-7988
          Email: [email protected]

5. Contact the president of the Assembly of Catholic Bishops of Ontario.
         Cardinal Thomas Collins
         Archdiocese of Toronto
         1155 Yonge Street
         Toronto, ON, M4T 1W2
         Tel: (416) 934-0606, ext. 609; FAX: (416) 934-3452
         e-mail: [email protected]