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In an effort to "be more inclusive," a religious school is removing a statue of baby Jesus and Mary, along with other religious icons from its campus.
So far they have "relocated" 18 of the 180 icons and statues that reflect Christianity.
Parents are angry.
The school is explaining.
The Marin [County, Calif.] Journal Independent reports that "The move of San Domenico, an independent Catholic school founded in 1850, has sparked strong reactions from parents."
Shannon Fitzpatrick, whose 8 year old son attends the school, sent a very direct email to the school's board of directors.
She said, "Articulating an inclusive foundation appears to mean letting go of San Domenico's 167-year tradition as a Dominican Catholic school and being both afraid and ashamed to celebrate one's heritage and beliefs."
She added, "In our time here, the word 'Catholic' has been removed from the mission statement, sacraments were removed from the curriculum, the lower school curriculum was changed to world religions, the logo and colors were changed to be 'less Catholic', and the uniform was changed to be less Catholic."
She followed up in a second email, "There are other families having the same concerns I do. Many parents feel if the school is heading in a different direction then the San Domenico community should have been notified before the signing of the enrollment for the following year."
Kim Piki, whose daughter left San Domenico two years ago after graduating from 9th grade, said "some of the statues were also important to families who were not Catholic."
She said, "The one main statue that has everyone fired up is the baby Jesus and Mary one"---"It was at the center of the primary school yard."
She says, "People were shocked that the statues were pitched into the basement."
The basement of the library is apparently the area of "relocation" the school board has referenced.
Cheryl Newell, who had four children graduate from San Domenico, said, "I am extremely disappointed in the school and the direction they've been going. This isn't a new thing that they've been intentionally eroding their Catholic heritage. They're trying to be something for everyone and they're making no one happy."
My point in bringing this to your attention is two-fold.
I know a number of Catholics read this daily article. I wanted you to be informed regarding this school.
Secondly, I am not a Catholic---I'm a Protestant, but am deeply concerned by churches and colleges in both the Catholic and Protestant communities that are fleeing not only any vestige of their Church affiliations, but their affiliation with Christianity itself in a misguided attempt to "be something for everyone..."
The Apostle Paul---St. Paul for you Catholics---said, "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, 'The just shall live by faith'" (Rom. 1: 16,17).
Paul then refers to the wrath of God in relation to those who suppress the Truth in unrighteousness.
It's a very serious matter to publicly claim Christianity---then suppress the Truth of Christianity.
And it's also difficult to explain.
Sister Maureen McInerney said she hadn't visited the campus for some time, but she was under the impression they had actually "relocated" the statues on campus, not tossed them into the basement.
She too, is deeply disappointed.
However, the school is trying to explain their new, non-Catholic, non Christian position.
Amy Skewes-Cox, who heads the school's board of trustees, says, "If you walk on campus and the first thing you confront is three or four statues of St. Dominic or St. Francis, it could be alienating for that other religion, and we don't want to further that feeling."
Cecily Stock, the Head of School, says we are both a Catholic school and an Independent school and we must be inclusive of all the other religions---suggesting Jesus would be a problem.
She and others then launch into the financial considerations---which is really what this is all about in my opinion.
Kimberly Pinkson told Fox News, "Our goal in this shift was in alignment with the strategic plan..."
Stock says, "It's really about empowering each student and giving them the information so they can discover their own purpose, their own truth."
This is a profile of Christianity in decline in 2017.
A Christian school, built on the back of Catholic support, for more than a century---now empowering people to discover their own truth.
This also points to folly of attempting to become all things to all men.
Paul is often quoted as affirming the idea of "becoming all things to all men..." ( I Corth. 9:22). However, a closer and more honest look at the context of that Scripture shows us he was talking about reaching the Jews and the Greeks with the gospel of Christ---not finding social acceptance. And he was talking about denying himself certain "rights" to be heard by these communities for the expressed purpose of converting them to Christianity.
His purpose was not simply to "relate" to them by masking the gospel.
Abraham Lincoln once said, "America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves."
Patrick Henry famously said, "When people forget God, tyrants forge their chains."
When institutions---churches and schools---that were raised up to advance the gospel of Christ and the principles of Christianity---align themselves with goals that are in conflict with their original mission, they are "forgetting God."
This is the path to self destruction.
God help us to stand, not fall in these trying times.
Be Faithful. Be Bold. Be Vigilant. Be Prayerful.