Teaching Independence of Thought and Morality

This Catholic school in Thunder Bay, Ontario has a unique way to teach students to think for themselves and search their souls for their moral views. From the National Post newspaper:

Pro-choice stickerslead tostudent suspensions

A Catholic school in Thunder Bay has disciplined seven students who sported homemade pro-choice stickers during a school-sanctioned pro-life Day of Silence.

The St. Patrick's Catholic High School students were either sent home or suspended for refusing to remove green pieces of tape with the word "choice" during a pro-life event Thursday, organized by a school chaplain and a student group, in which students sported similar labels with the word "life."

Among the students sent home was Alexandria Szeglet, 15, who initated the protest after telling her mother that morning she disagreed with the event. Ann Szeglet responded, "Be peaceful about it. Don't make it a big deal."

"I was really respectful, but I just think the school goes a little further than a high school should [in] saying prolife," Alexandria said.

Alexandria shared the tape and markers with her peers, but says she didn't solicit their participation. In total, 24 students were asked to remove the "choice" labels, 17 of whom complied. Alexandria was sent home only for the day, but once she left, events escalated and several students became confrontational, which led to six two-day suspensions. Four were issued for refusing requests to remove the labels and breaking the school's code of conduct, and two for swearing at teachers.

It appears the "lesson" this school wants to teach these kids is "shut and do as you are told" and that "independent thought will get you thrown out of school" and "morals are what we tell you and not what you feel or know or discover". I would say there is not much difference in the educational techniques of this school and those of the National Socialist German Workers' Party (aka Nazi party). But I must admit, as a non-Catholic I don't understand the subtle difference between accepting uncritically the dictates of "der Führer" versus accepting "with blind faith" the decrees of the Pope.

Some would say "if you don't accept the dogmas of the Catholic church, you shouldn't go to a Catholic school". I can buy that. But since Catholic schools are subsidized by taxpayers in Canada, it seems to me that those who honestly feel themselves to be Catholics but who have qualms over some aspects of "the Faith" should be allowed to attend the taxpayer supported schools. If you are going to accept public money, you have to give the public access to your facilities.

What I find outrageous is that any institution today thinks it has the right to tell people how to think. With the long history of corrupted institutions, it is just plain silly to think that one institution has hold of "the Truth" and cannot possibly be wrong. That runs smack up against the facts of human nature and the long history of human follies.