Family First Upper House candidates Bernie Finn and Jane Foreman today pledged that, if elected, Family First will fight to restore the freedom of Catholic and other faith-based schools to uphold their ethos without government or court interference.
A current case involving a Catholic school in Melbourne demonstrates just how far state intrusion has gone. A Catholic college is being forced into court simply for seeking to uphold Catholic teaching on human anthropology – a teaching that affirms the biological reality of male and female.
"It is outrageous that a Catholic school, supported by parents precisely because of its ethos, has to spend time and money defending itself in court," Mr Finn said. "This is an unacceptable overreach of the state into religious freedom. Parents must be free to send their kids to a school which does not indoctrinate them."
Ms Foreman said families expect Catholic and Christian schools to reflect their beliefs, not bow to radical ideology. "If staff or students wish to identify as non-binary or adopt an identity contrary to the teaching of the Church, there are plenty of other schools available. Parents who choose a Catholic school do so because they want their children educated in accordance with Catholic values, not in defiance of them."
Family First also pointed to the surge in enrolments at Christian schools as parents flee public schools where LGBTIQA+ ideology has been embedded in the curriculum.
"A religious school must have the right to uphold biology and anthropology in line with science and its faith tradition," Mr Finn said. "Anything less is a denial of the rights of parents and an intrusion into freedom of religion."
Family First has pledged to act in the Victorian Parliament to ensure that faith-based schools can continue to teach and live out their beliefs without fear of legal attack.
