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Gay Catholic school teacher fired days after getting married

People wonder why organized religion and I have parted ways. The story I'm about to report is one of the many reasons for that.

Ken Bencomo, 45, had taught at St. Lucy's Priory High School in Glendora, California for 17 years. This was until Bencomo married his partner of 10 years - Christopher Persky, and was fired a few days later.

According to the Archdiocese of Los Angeles parish staff handbook, an employee may be suspended or terminated for "behavior counter to the moral teachings and standards of the church."

So, according to this, if Bencomo had married two or more women, things would be hunky dory, wouldn't they? Also, as I always say, according to the Bible, aren't we all sinful? So, whether or not one wants to believe homosexuality to be immoral or not is irrelevant. According to this holy book, we're all sinful. Also, no one on this earth wrote anything in the Bible, so we can't be 100% certain of how to interpret the original with the utmost accuracy. Given all this, if St. Lucy's wants to fire Mr. Bencomo for what some believe to be immoral behavior, wouldn't they have to fire everyone working at the school? Ah, but no - they'll just cherry-pick, as usual.

This is quite bothersome, especially given the fact that Pope Francis recently said this about homosexuals - "Who am I to judge a gay person of goodwill who seeks the Lord? You can't marginalize these people."

Also, according to a recent Gallup poll, 60% of Catholics believe in legalizing gay marriage. Not only that, but the students of St. Lucy's are fighting back to get Bencomo re-hired. They filed a petition to Change.org, which said this:

"He is a beloved mentor, confidant, and educator. His passion for teaching, as well as his witty personality, have made him a favorite teacher among many students. He is extremely active at St. Lucy's; he teaches multiple subjects along with taking on various leadership positions including Yearbook moderator, dance coach, and head of the English Department."

As of 3:30 pm EST today, over 13,000 people have signed the petition. If you'd like to sign the petition and spread word about it as well, it can be found at this link - https://www.change.org/petitions/st-lucy-s-priory-high-school-give-ken-bencomo-his-job-back

It's about time people stopped getting fired for discriminatory reasons. Whether it be at a Catholic or a public school, a teacher shouldn't be fired for being gay. I'd think this would especially be the case at a Catholic school. "Love thy neighbor," right? ...or does that include a disclaimer for people whom are gay? "Love thy neighbor as thyself, unless that neighbor is gay." What would Jesus do? Probably not stay mum on grown men molesting little boys while firing a man for marrying his partner of 10 years.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/01/gay-teacher-fired-catholic-school_n_3690516.html

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