EDITORIAL Three decisions provoke more than they
solve
Three rulings handed down by the
U.S. Supreme Court June 28 have generated intense reaction from Catholics
aligned with three interest groups: gay rights, antiabortion and educational
vouchers. Many of the rest of us may give these issues little more than passing
notice as we get on with our busy lives. It is not enough.
All three decisions deserve serious, sustained reflection from
Catholics who understand their religion to be more than a private affair.
In a 5-4 vote, Supreme Court justices ruled that Boy Scouts could
bar gay members from the program. The ruling applies not only to leaders, as
some news reports have suggested, but also to members. That includes boys in
middle school and high school, who are often struggling to understand
themselves as sexual beings.
The basis for the courts decision was unrelated to the
question of whether Boy Scouts are characterized as a public or a private
organization under the law (another common misconception in news reports). The
New Jersey Supreme Court had already determined that Scouting fit the
states definition of a public group, so the U.S. court had no reason to
explore that issue.
Rather, the ruling was based on an argument by the Boy Scouts that
a heterosexuals-only policy is inherent to the groups identity and
message. The basis of their reasoning is that two terms in the familiar Scout
Oath and Law -- morally straight and clean -- are
intended to bar homosexuals from the program.
Many who have spent years in Scouting may be surprised to learn
that the Boy Scouts interpret those terms in that way. Indeed, dissenting
justices criticized the majority for its facile acceptance of that
interpretation.
It probably is not the expectation of anyone enrolling a son in
Boy Scouts that the issue of homosexuality would take its place amid troop
discussions of merit badges and camping trips. But since the issue has been
raised, it is important that local troops consider what kind of message they
send. That consideration is especially important for groups attached to
Catholic churches -- one of the biggest sponsors of Boy Scout troops. It may be
time to seriously reexamine churches longstanding and widespread support.
The social policy board of the United Methodist church, which sponsors some
420,000 Scouts, has moved in the right direction by publicly condemning the
organizations position on gays, though the board stopped short of calling
for churches to sever ties with troops.
It is instructive to note that the ruling, authored by Chief
Justice William H. Rehnquist, refers to homosexuality as a value,
betraying a major weakness of the decision. As homosexuals come together to
reflect and deepen their understanding of their identity, they assert that
their sexual preferences are no more a value than the color of a
persons skin. Rather, they tell us, homosexuality is at the core of their
identity as persons. Increasingly, that is the view of responsible voices in
the disciplines exploring the issue of homosexuality. It is only those on the
fringes of science and theology who assert that God would be pleased if
homosexuals sought to change their sexual orientation.
Such new understandings should push Catholics further along the
continuum of inclusiveness. What a powerful statement it would make to the
world if Scout troops sponsored by Catholic parishes let it be known that they
will not exclude on the basis of sexual orientation. Immediate disavowal of
such discriminatory policies would send a message to boys, young men and adults
leaders every bit as character-building as anything else in the Boy Scout
program.
Two other Supreme Court rulings, one refusing to uphold
Nebraskas ban on the procedure known as partial-birth
abortion and another allowing use of public funds to provide computers to
religious schools, also carry noteworthy messages.
The ruling against the Nebraska law -- and, in effect, against
similar laws in 30 other states -- points up anew how anguished the culture is
over the painfully divisive issue of abortion. The court ruled against the law
because the state barred specific types of medical procedures without allowing
for exceptions to preserve a womans health. Nebraska allowed an exception
only to preserve a womans life.
However abhorrent partial-birth abortion is to caring people, an
exception to also preserve a womans health, the one the court found
missing, seems reasonable in a pluralistic society. But reasonable is
not a word that works well in the highly charged context of the public debate
over abortion, where arguments are formulated at the most extreme ends of the
spectrum.
James J. Walter, professor of theological studies at Loyola
Marymount University in Los Angeles, was commenting on the implications of the
genome project when he said of the court decision, We cant agree in
this society what a person is.
The lack of consensus on that fundamental point, of course, is the
sand upon which legal opinions have been based since the 1973 Roe v.
Wade decision. It is the fundamental reason why law has been unable to
adequately deal with the matter of abortion. And it is why we are left to try
to puzzle out in courts what should remain private medical decisions over
extreme cases, agonized over by parents and physicians.
Perhaps the more compelling day-to-day question that abortion foes
need to ask themselves is whether costly and tedious effort aimed at more
restrictive laws is really the most effective means of combating abortion.
The third ruling is one that many Catholics will celebrate. It
allows provision of publicly funded instructional equipment, including
computers, to private and religious schools. As Sandra Day OConnor
expressed it in writing her opinion, public funds are allowed for textbooks,
and computers are becoming the textbooks of our time. True, computers could be
used to promote religion. But a majority of the justices apparently trust
teachers and administrators in religious schools to use the computers for legal
purposes: for instruction that is unrelated to religion.
Advocates of educational vouchers, which allow parents to use
public funds to send their children to public, private or religious schools,
did not pause long to celebrate before concluding that the courts
decision is indicative of voucher support.
Perhaps it is. It is too soon to tell. Meanwhile, Catholics are
overlooking their debt to a society that not only offers limited support to
Catholic schools but is prepared to educate their children even if Catholic
schools disappear.
In the pursuit of vouchers, do Catholics owe anything to public
education, which so vitally affects our national life?
In parishes, in homes and in the highest levels of church life,
that debate hasnt even begun.
National Catholic Reporter, July 14,
2000
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