Townsville school linked to gender contract firestorm
A Townsville school has been caught up in the “gender contract” debacle after an email was sent to staff with a link to a petition to “defend Christian schools” which “only employ staff who share and model biblical beliefs”.
Education
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A Townsville school has been caught up in the “gender contract” debacle after an email was sent to staff with a link to a petition to “defend Christian schools” which “only employ staff who share and model biblical beliefs”.
The Townsville Bulletin received a copy of the email from a concerned staff member.
The school, which the Bulletin has chosen not to identify, is one of 20 Christian or Catholic schools in Townsville.
Citipointe Christian College in Brisbane came under fire on Monday after it was revealed the school sent out an enrolment contract for parents to sign.
The contract stated the school could terminate a child’s enrolment if they did not identify with their birth gender.
It noted the bible tied gender identity to biological sex and does not make a distinction between gender and biological sex.
The document also branded homosexuality “sinful, offensive and destructive”, while it also lumped it into the same category as paedophilia and incest.
The contract outlined marriage and sexual intimacy should only be between a biological man and woman and the school’s anti-abortion and anti-euthanasia stance.
The contract caused massive blowback across the country, with Queensland Education Minister Grace Grace describing it as ‘distressing’ and Brisbane Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner, whose children go to the school, saying he wouldn’t sign it.
College Principal Pastor Brian Mulheran defended the contract initially, before it was withdrawn on Thursday amid a barrage of criticism.
The online petition was launched in light of the Citipointe drama by Australian Christian Lobby, the same group who raised money for Israel Folau’s legal fees after his Rugby Australia contract was torn up for sharing homophobic bible references on social media.
The petition has more than 31,000 signatures to date, with a target of 40,000.
“Christian schools have come under fire from activists for standing up for their values,” the petition states.
“Parents across Australia choose to send their children to a Christian school – at significant cost – because they want their children to receive an education where Christian values are wired into that education.
“Christian schools must be able to maintain their biblical values and hire staff who affirm and model those values.
“Please sign the petition to show you support Christian schools and defend their right to provide a Christ-centred education without interference, including declaring their beliefs, convictions and standards. Teaching students from the Bible. Requiring conduct at school that is consistent with biblical values. Only employing staff who share and model biblical beliefs.”
Townsville students are set to return to school next week.
Originally published as Townsville school linked to gender contract firestorm
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