My College's Policy on Homosexuality

I don't really know if this is the best place to post this. I go to a schoolassociated with the Christian Reformed Church and there has been a lot of controversy regarding the school's gay policy. Earlier this year, the board refused the director of Milk to speak on campus. Since then there has been a petition going around the school asking the board to reconsider their position. Below will be the school's official opinion, followed by the campus-wide email we received from the chairmen. I don't really know what I am expecting to get out of this...but it is so incredibly frustrating that I needed to share.

- INSTITUTIONAL STATEMENT ON HOMOSEXUALITY

The college, like its founding denomination, the Reformed Church in America,
distinguishes between homosexual orientation and homosexual behavior or practice. Not all people who have a homosexual orientation engage in homosexual practice and not all people who engage in homosexual practices have a homosexual orientation. The witness of Scripture is firm in rejecting the moral acceptability of homosexual behavior while affirming the responsibility of Christians to be fair and accepting of persons with a homosexual orientation.

The College does not condone the commission of homosexual acts. Neither does it condone organizations or activities that aim to vindicate the moral acceptability of homosexual acts, or that suggest by their manner of presenting themselves that they have that aim in view. Specifically, the College will not provide recognition or financial or logistical support for organizations or groups whose purposes include the advocacy or moral legitimization of homosexual behavior.

The College does support fair and kind treatment for people with a homosexual orientation. It likewise supports the scholarly examination and discussion of all the issues surrounding the phenomenon of homosexuality. The College affirms the right of students and faculty to propound and defend ideas that may be at variance with the institutional position of the College. Persons expressing such views are expected to take care not to attribute those views to the College either by direct statement or by intimation.

RESPONSE FROM CHAIR PERSON


You should know that the College has received the widely reported petition
regarding its position on homosexuality, although significantly later
than its contents were revealed to the press. The petition was
authored by a small group of dissenting alumni and addressed to the
Board of Trustees. The petition asked that copies of the petition be
furnished to all members of the Board of Trustees and the matter of
revoking the College's position be placed on the agenda for the next meeting.
We have also received a petition from several students in support of
the position taken by the dissenting alumni group.

Although I find this attempt to promote ambush journalism to be
offensive,the Board of Trustees is not shy about addressing issues
which relate to its core values of providing excellent academic
programs in the liberal arts and nurturing a vibrant Christian faith.
As a result, all Trustees will be provided with a copy of the petition
and it will be on the agenda at the next Board of Trustees meeting.

Because the Trustees have no authority to act except in a duly called
meeting, and I respect the deliberative process they undertake, it
would be inappropriate for me to speculate about any decision they may
make. You can be confident that the Board will consider this matter
in its usual manner: carefully, thoughtfully, thoroughly and
prayerfully and in the best interests of the College.


Anyway...I know this is long...thanks for taking the time to read it!

 

So basically the statement says that the *CHRISTIAN* school doesn't believe that Homosexuality is morally acceptable? Thats not much of a surprise, and with that in mind the rest of the statement makes it clear that although the school fundamentally doesn't condone same-sex acts they DO condone a student's right to dissent on their policy. Also based upon the chair's response your school seems, as a religious institution, to be surprisingly open-minded on the issue. Although its carefully worded response and may just be a "we're thinking about it, but only because it's politically destructive not to, and once the hysteria subsides we will silently NOT CHANGE our position."
Honestly my own opinion here is that you should simply let it go or find a new school. They will have their opinion regardless of the hooting-and-hollering from our minority and there are lots of other, very open-minded, campuses around the country. So it may perhaps come down to either, A: continue a fruitless crusade to change the iron-mind-set of Christian America in a ideologically entrenched school, or B: find a better place to learn. Chances are anyway if the school is resistant to such basic pricinples as equal treatment of all races/creeds/orientations, then their teachings may be similarly limited. Just my 2c.

 

Keep pushing untill they kick you out. Kiss boys in school etc...
One things homophobes can't stand is gay people who are happy.
So like I said, keep pushing untill they kick you out and take it to court.

 

oh yeah, happy gays who love life! it is the worst things for homophobes!

 

the only thing about this is the fact that it is likely a private institution means they could kick him out and still be well within the law.

 

It depends on whether or not they get ANY federal funding. If they receive any form of financial assistance from the government, they couldn't kick you out without losing that assitance.

Many private schools get federal funding, but, I suspect that since they are so strongly positioned on this, that they have that part figured out.

Why attend this school?