Faith of our fathers – lesbian, gay and bisexual teachers’ attitudes towards the teaching of religion in Irish denominational primary schools

Abstract

Owing to a variety of complex historical and socio-cultural factors, the Irish education system remains heavily influenced by denominational mores and values [Ferriter, D. 2012. Occasions of Sin: Sex & Society in Modern Ireland. London: Profile Books], particularly those of the Roman Catholic Church [O’Toole, B. 2015. “1831–2014: An Opportunity to Get it Right This Time? Some Thoughts on the Current Debate on Patronage and Religious Education in Irish Primary in Primary Schools: Reflections from the Republic of Ireland.” Irish Educational Studies 34 (1): 89–102. doi:10.1080/03323315.2015.1010704; Faas, D., M. Darmody, and B. Sokolowska. 2016. “Religious Diversity in Primary Schools: Reflections from the Republic of Ireland.” British Journal of Religious Education 38 (1): 83–98]. Unsurprisingly, with the declaration by the Church that homosexuality was ‘intrinsically disordered’ [Libreria Edittrice Vaticana. 2003. “Roman Catholic Catechism.” Accessed January 18 2013. http://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p3s2c2a6.htm], the professional identity and practice of lesbian, gay and bisexual (LGB) teachers working in denominational schools is often (in)formed by fear, as well as perceived, or actual, harassment and discrimination [Gowran, S. 2004. “The Experiences of Gay and Lesbian Teachers in Irish Schools.” In Primary Voices, edited by J. Deegan, D. Devine, and A. Lodge, 37–56. Dublin: IPA; Fahie, D. 2016. “‘Spectacularly Exposed and Vulnerable’ – How Irish Equality Legislation Subverted the Personal and Professional Security of Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Teachers.” Sexualities]. This paper examines the lived-experience of 23 self-identified LGB teachers who work(ed) in Irish Roman Catholic primary schools. Their unique experiences and perspectives of faith-based schooling are examined against a backdrop of the complex processes of rationalisation and reflexivity these teachers undertake as they endeavour to reconcile their sense of personal integrity – as members of the LGB community – with their professional responsibilities. The study draws particular attention to those LGB teachers who hold deeply felt, and sincere, beliefs in the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church but who, nonetheless, express a level of discomfort at the language and tone of church dogma in respect of minority sexualities.

Keywords:

• sexuality
• teachers
• religion
• denominational education

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes on contributor

Dr Declan Fahie is Director of School Placement at the School of Education, University College Dublin. He has published nationally and internationally on workplace bullying, qualitative research methodologies, teacher effectiveness and queer issues in education.

Notes

1. Accessed December 16 2015. http://www.irishtimes.com/news/ireland/irish-news/diarmuid-martin-catholic-church-needs-reality-check-1.2223872

2. Accessed December 16 2015. http://www.irishtimes.com/news/social-affairs/religion-and-beliefs/marriage-referendum-a-defeat-for-humanity-does-the-vatican-just-not-get-it-1.2231184

3. http://www.irishtimes.com/news/education/survey-of-principals-shows-support-for-less-religious-teaching-1.2511506

4. In November 2015, Castletroy College, Limerick, which comes under the patronage of the local Education and Training Board, with the local Catholic Bishop as a joint patron, agreed to allow a student to withdraw from religious education. The student and her father had previously been told that religion was a mandatory subject and that she would have to participate in religion lessons (see http://www.rte.ie/news/2015/1123/748507-schools-religion. Accessed March 22 2016)

Additional information

Funding

This study was supported by the Irish Research Council's Post-Doctoral Fellowship scheme. The author is also grateful to the Royal Irish Academy for funding a Visiting Scholarship to the Centre for Lesbian and Gay Studies, CUNY, New York.