Friday, April 15, 2011

California Catholic Bishops Express Oppositon to SB 48

But their opposition seems a little tepid to me. For instance, I've heard of nothing being sent from bishops to pastors, instructing them to encourage parishioners to call their representatives.


"The California Catholic Conference is opposing a state bill that would require social studies texts to specifically include the role and contributions of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Americans. The bill would also prohibit the state Board of Education from adopting instructional materials that discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity.

The bill, SB 48, is 'unnecessary and overly intrusive' conference Executive Director Ned Dolejsi testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee April 5. Teaching acceptance and tolerance is laudable but 'making the characteristic of an historical actor preeminent in the study of her or his accomplishment, contribution and/or historical significance potentially diminishes the individual and the subject matter being taught,' the conference said in a letter to the committee."

The article also quoted from the press release of Senator Mark Leno (D-SF), author of the bill:


"Most textbooks don’t include any historical information about the LGBT movement, which has great significance to both California and U.S. history. Our collective silence on this issue perpetuates negative stereotypes of LGBT people and leads to increased bullying of young people. We can’t simultaneously tell youth that it’s OK to be yourself and live an honest, open life when we aren’t even teaching students about historical LGBT figures or the LGBT equal rights movement.”


We responded to that argument in a post on SB 48 back in February: "While individual same-sex attracted individuals have certainly contributed to the good of society, it is undeniable that the 'great significance to both California and U.S. history' of the LGBT movement in 'contemporary society' has been the ongoing attempt at the destruction of marriage and the near self-extermination of male homosexuals through the AIDS epidemic."


We could add the role that the "LGBT movement" has played in the eradication of sexual modesty. The LGBT movement is not solely resposible for this, of course, but they bear their share of responsibility--certainly in San Francisco. Example: these two guys are in San Francisco's 2008 "Pride" parade--right in the center of the city:



Sorry if anyone is offended, but that is reality. For a very forthright bit of church teaching on the issue of same-sex attractedness, see this article about Bishop Fabian Bruskewitz.


Posted by Gibbons J. Cooney

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