H
Hayes91
Guest
Hi there! I’m a first-year Catholic High School teacher with a difficult issue regarding a colleague.
My school is part of a campus which includes an elementary school; we are parish-based, which I love. In conversation with our pastor, I understand that he expects all teachers to be Catholic.
Recently, a friend of mine underwent major surgery. During his recovery, his roommate was a colleague of mine, whom I’ll call Pete for anonymity. Pete is an open homosexual, and made no secret of his hostility towards the Church. I later looked him up on Facebook and found that his public profile is full of LGBT activism. In my opinion, ones’ personal life is no longer a private faith matter when it comes to the education of children. I consider this to be an issue of scandal. According to my friend, during recovery, Pete had many male “friends” come visit with whom he was openly affectionate. It made my friend very uncomfortable.
But MOST importantly Pete bragged about what it’s like being around young male students. He said, “you’d think the hot spot is the locker room, but no, it’s 2:30 at dismissal when everyone is pressed together in the hallway.” He also said he liked to pinch boys’ backsides and be physically close to them.
Because I didn’t hear this first-hand, I allowed my friend to do what he thought was prudent: bring it to the attention of his pastor, who happens to be the priest at the neighboring Catholic church. (The two priests know each other well) That priest, a friend of mine too, assured me he would tell the pastor of the church for which I teach. But it’s been some time, and I don’t know if anything has been said or done. Are these statements allegations enough to have someone removed?
I’m starting to wonder if it’s wrong on my conscience to remain silent. I don’t want to be fired as a whistleblower, but it makes me sick every time I see this teacher and think that he is influencing the students. What should I do?
My school is part of a campus which includes an elementary school; we are parish-based, which I love. In conversation with our pastor, I understand that he expects all teachers to be Catholic.
Recently, a friend of mine underwent major surgery. During his recovery, his roommate was a colleague of mine, whom I’ll call Pete for anonymity. Pete is an open homosexual, and made no secret of his hostility towards the Church. I later looked him up on Facebook and found that his public profile is full of LGBT activism. In my opinion, ones’ personal life is no longer a private faith matter when it comes to the education of children. I consider this to be an issue of scandal. According to my friend, during recovery, Pete had many male “friends” come visit with whom he was openly affectionate. It made my friend very uncomfortable.
But MOST importantly Pete bragged about what it’s like being around young male students. He said, “you’d think the hot spot is the locker room, but no, it’s 2:30 at dismissal when everyone is pressed together in the hallway.” He also said he liked to pinch boys’ backsides and be physically close to them.
Because I didn’t hear this first-hand, I allowed my friend to do what he thought was prudent: bring it to the attention of his pastor, who happens to be the priest at the neighboring Catholic church. (The two priests know each other well) That priest, a friend of mine too, assured me he would tell the pastor of the church for which I teach. But it’s been some time, and I don’t know if anything has been said or done. Are these statements allegations enough to have someone removed?
I’m starting to wonder if it’s wrong on my conscience to remain silent. I don’t want to be fired as a whistleblower, but it makes me sick every time I see this teacher and think that he is influencing the students. What should I do?