In response to St. Paul Elementary School's decision to deny admission to a boy whose parents are lesbians, the Archdiocese of Boston said that the Hingham school was not following policy, the Boston Globe reports:
"Spokesman Terry Donilon said the archdiocese has no prohibition against same-sex couples sending their children to Catholic schools.
“We want kids to come to Catholic schools,'' he said.
St. Paul Elementary School admitted an 8-year-old boy earlier this year but recently withdrew the acceptance after learning that his parents are lesbians, the archdiocese confirmed yesterday. Donilon said the archdiocese would have no further comment until it had finished reviewing the matter and speaking with all parties involved.
The Rev. James Rafferty, pastor of St. Paul parish, and Cynthia Duggan, the school's principal, did not respond to requests for an interview yesterday afternoon. Lisa Lipsett, an adviser to the school's PTO Executive Committee, referred all questions to the archdiocese.
The decision incensed state Representative Garrett J. Bradley, a Democrat from Hingham who grew up in St. Paul parish.
'These parents thought enough of St. Paul's to want to send their child there; St. Paul's thought enough of their child to admit him. For the school to then discriminate against him and withdraw his acceptance because of his parents' sexual orientation is not only inappropriate, but mind-blowing,' he said in a phone interview last night. 'Shame on St. Paul's, and shame on us as a community if we allow it.'"
