It is often instructive to watch some arbiters of community morals and behavior, such as the folks who comprise the Quad-City Times editorial board become entangled in their righteousness.
It has played out this past week for all to see and for each of us to come to our own conclusions.
It began Wednesday with the Times exhorting Iowans to “take pride in these scholars”.
“These scholars” were the winners of the Des Moines-based Eychaner Foundation scholarships. On its website, the Eychaner Foundation notes that scholarship applicants must identify as LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual,or transgender) to have their application considered. It also suggests that the scholarships are awarded exclusively to students who are “out and proud”.
One of those recipients was a student at Prince of Peace Catholic High School in Clinton. The Times, in its editorial joined “family, friends and school leaders” in cheering the youngster’s achievement. At the same time, the Times was critical of the Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Davenport for not joining in the celebration of this event and saying the presentation was “inappropriate for a Catholic school” .
The Bishop, in a statement, noted that the award promoted a position “that is contrary to the teachings of the Catholic Church”. His order barred the foundation’s representatives from making the presentation on the school premises.
Because of this stance, the student, according to the Times, reported to the Eychaner Foundation that he “never felt as invalidated and unaccepted”. In a press release the Foundation, reacting to the Bishop’s position posed the question: “Do their beliefs (those of the Catholic Church) support intolerance and bullying?”
There are various aspects of this episode which tend to beg questions which the QC Times should address as enthusiastically as they have in beating their out size drum on behalf of the one side of this issue.
First of all, it is not clear exactly what achievements Iowans are supposed to “take pride in these scholars”.
While our community is always pleased to honor outstanding students for their scholastic achievements, the basis for awarding of these “Matthew Shepard” scholarships is not clearly reported by the Times.
Although the editorial alludes to “academic achievemenrt”, it does not spell out further the extent of the achievement. (The Foundation’s website says applicants must have a GPA of 3.0/4,0 or better and ACT of 22 or better). Instead the Times suggests that, in the case of the QC area student, the primary basis was a personal essay he submitted along with the application for scholarship. The essay disclosed “his sexuality” and noted the “heartfelt acceptance and support” provided by family, friends, students, and faculty at the Catholic school he attends.
We learn in the editorial that the intent of the scholarship program is to recognize “highly achieving gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender high school seniors”. We believe, from the Times’ account as well as Eychaner Foundation statements, that one can presume that the criteria prized most highly in evaluating eligibility for a scholarship is the applicant’s sexual orientation and activism on behalf of the LGBT community, with scholastic achievement secondary. The editorial affirms that the scholarship was awarded “not just for divulging his (sexual) orientation, but actively working with school leaders to cultivate tolerance and acceptance”.
This prompts a question the QC Times might consider too sensitive to raise.
The Times, I believe, would be the first to oppose and reject any discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. But, in this case, based on what is provided by Times’ reporting and opinion and the Eychaner’s own eligibility requirements, a “straight” student is not eligible for consideration for a Matthew Shepard scholarship…simply on the basis of his or her “sexual orientation”.
What then of an organization, let’s say a Catholic one, who sponsored a scholarship program “to recognize ‘straight’ students who promote within their community the teachings and ideals of the Catholic Church”. The Clinton youth who has been awarded the Matthew Shepard scholarship, and any other gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender student would not, of course, be eligible to apply. It is likely that the Prince of Peace administrators and faculty would be scandalized by such discrimination.
We realize, of course, that to comment on this matter with anything but high praise and approval of their position surely invites the condemnation of the Times and of the liberal community within and outside the Catholic Church.
Nevertheless, we believe that expression of another view is not inappropriate.
In this view, there is no animosity toward the student receiving this award and his family, nor toward those who have supported him and fully accepted his orientation and his decision to divulge it. It is not clear, however, why others of us in the community and the Catholic Church should be called upon to “take pride” in this event. What are we to celebrate ? A young man chose to share with the public his personal sexual orientation. That’s fine. Those who wish to go beyond simply accepting his sexual preferences are certainly free to do so. They may celebrate it and promote it and even encourage others who may have such proclivities.
None of us have a right to treat this young man unfairly or subject him to disrespect, or worse.
But we are not obliged to endorse, promote, even celebrate, or “take pride in” his personal decisions. Nor is the Catholic Church obliged to honor the occasion and is not deserving of being held up as some grotesque caricature of intolerance and insensitivity by the self appointed arbiters of proper behavior of the Quad City Times editorial board. Or the charges by the Eychaner Foundation that to adhere to the Bishop’s initial statement suggests that the beliefs of the Catholic faith “support intolerance and bullying”.
One final word. Not to suggest that the Clinton student who was awarded this scholarship was not deserving by whatever criteria was applied but it is not unfair to speculate that, for the Eychaner Foundation, his selection would be considered a “high fives all around” occasion. To receive an application from a gay student attending a Catholic school in a community served by a liberal newspaper which is widely known for aggressively promoting the gay agenda must have seemed to the Eychaner Foundation folks like winning the cultural trifecta!
And the Quad City Times certainly came through for them. They can now celebrate and take a “victory lap”, as they did in Saturday’s editorial (Prince of Peace teaches lesson to Q-C community) for the concessions from the Diocese they helped extract through the community pressure their efforts engendered ! DLH
I am not sure what’s worse, the QC Times still has this many readers and this much power, or this pathetic spineless Bishop screaming uncle.