Missing the Point in the Eastside Catholic Controversy

Eastside Catholic students protest about the latest instructor who has become involved in the gay marriage issue. But, students are wrong if they think the "issue" is about homosexuality.

I'm sure many of you across the country, but particularly those of you here locally in the Seattle area, have heard about the recent brouhaha at Eastside Catholic.  In the past few weeks, two of the instructor professionals have not only come out as gay/lesbian, but have also found themselves enmeshed in situations related to gay marriage.

Just this week, drama instructor Stephanie Merrow revealed that she became engaged to a woman recently. Outlets for her announcement included a local radio station where she was very direct in discussing her situation and praising students' support of her choice and actions.

Last month, a large-scale student protest ensued when Vice Principal Mark Zmuda was fired because he had married a man and kept that marriage a secret.

In both cases, students spoke out publicly and on camera, granting interviews demanding the school reconsider its policies on gay/lesbian teachers. They have boycotted classes, conducted interviews with any number of media and other groups, been outspoken in social media outlets and more. It's very admirable to take a stand for what you believe in, but I'm afraid that the students are missing a huge point...

Mark Zmuda was not sacked because he was gay. He was let go because he violated his contract with the school. While I have not personally seen the contract, I am a former Eastside Catholic parent, and so I can pretty much make an educated guess about what is in that contract. If it's similar to that of other many Christian or religious schools, there is likely a clause in their that advises the employee (teacher/staff) of the importance of upholding and adhering to the beliefs of the teachings the school follows. In the Catholic Church, at present, homosexuality is not in keeping with its doctrine and beliefs. Gay marriage, even more so, is not in keeping with the Church's teachings. Mark Zmuda signed that contract, an agreement that he would abide by those terms as part of his engagement as an employee of Eastside Catholic. It was one thing that Mark was gay; so what, big deal. That's HIS business. The problem came when he not only married another man, but then he hid that from the school. He violated the terms of his employment, and he got caught. THAT is why Mark Zmuda got fired.

The students, while they are to be commended for trying to point out how unfair intolerance is, are completely missing that vital point: when you agree to do something as a condition of employment, and you violate those conditions, you stand to face consequences. Then, on top of it, when you cover up the breach of contract and keep it a secret, it's doubly bad. It's no different than you agree to remain drug-free as a condition of having a specific job, then you get caught with drugs in your system when the employer conducts random drug testing.

So why isn't Stephanie Merrow being fired?  According to several sources, she is an independent contractor and not a contracted employee of the school. Presumably, she has not had to sign a contract with a "faith and practices" clause like Zmuda did. If she had, it would be just as appropriate to let her go as it was to remove Zmuda from his position.

That's the point that the kids are completely missing -- and many adults, too: this is not about gay/lesbian intolerance or about the "right" to gay marriage. Pope Francis himself is weighing the issues of how the Catholic Doctrine may need to evolve, given the changes in society. I'm not going to go there: that's a too weighty issue for me to even BEGIN to debate. And, it's not my job to play "God" and decide whether it's morally wrong or sinful to have same-sex relations. I know what the Church today teaches. I have plenty of gay and lesbian friends and I don't have an issue with their form of sexual and relational expression. It's THEIR business, just as it's my business which side of the sexual-orientation fence I find myself on. But what I do want to say to the kids is this:

If you are going to stand for something, be informed about what it is that caused the issue. Look at it from all angles before you stand up and protest. Because you are missing a very vital life-lesson here that may come to haunt you in a very few short years as you transition from student to employee and professional: you may be asked to agree to rules and conditions -- if you break your end of the agreement, don't be surprised when your employer breaks their end.

So, the summary of this is: this is not a gay-rights issue.  It is an employee contract issue, and, Mark Zmuda broke his contract with the school, hid the breach, got caught, and was fired.

Appropriately so.

If you have a problem with the policy, then by all means, either don't agree to the policy or work to change it. I'm betting it crossed Zmuda's mind more than once before, during, and after his marriage that he was skating on thin ice with regards to his job. It would be a great lesson he could offer to the students whose lives he was charged with helping form if he explained to them that the school acted reasonably in letting  him go. Help the kids  learn the lesson about what happens when  you brush off a contact and why acting with integrity is always the right thing, even when it's tough. I don't know what would have happened if Zmuda had been up-front about his marriage before it occurred. It's likely he still would have been out of a job, but he would have probably been asked to resign rather than abruptly fired, creating a controversy that never needed to be stirred up, and one that is inaccurate in its portrayal of the issue.