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From the June/July 2004 Issue
The Price of Acting Pro Life
Diana Flahive

Diane Flahive is co-founder of Colorado Concerned Catholics (CCC), an affiliate of Voices of the Faithful.

As teachers and administrators prepare their students for summer with hugs, presents, and tearful goodbyes, Janelle longs to be with her young learners. She wishes she could tell them how wonderful they are and bid them and their families a great summer. Instead, she remembers how she was not given this opportunity. Nor was she able to explain why she had to leave abruptly.

Janelle was a computer teacher at a Catholic elementary school. When she talks about being with her students, she remembers with joy the special connection she had with them and their families, their creativity and learning. She beams - only to have that pride and joy followed by tears.

She recalls how she was called into the school office and told, “Your petition to the Archdiocese to be a pregnant unmarried teacher was denied.” The petition she had requested was rejected by the Superintendent of Catholic Schools of the Archdiocese of Denver. Her role as a teacher, single and pregnant, could not and would not be tolerated. These are the “rules” of the Archdiocese.

When she discovered she was pregnant, Janelle had spoken openly and honestly with the principal. Together, with the assistance of the pastor, they were planning to respect the life of her unborn child. They also contemplated how they would respect both her own needs as well those of the staff, students and families associated with the school. This would be difficult, yet a very real-life situation. Their question was, “How can this be used as a positive teaching and learning opportunity?” But that was not to be.

When the Archdiocese realized what was happening, the principal and pastor were told this “situation” needed to be dealt with immediately. Janelle was called into the school office, put on immediate leave, told to return her keys and pack up her belongings. She was never allowed to speak with her students or their families to explain the situation. She was whisked away in the night, shamed and treated as though she no longer existed.

With intentions of marriage to her partner of two years, Janelle’s pregnancy, though not planned, had been received with joy. Her houghts were only about the child inside her womb and how this precious new life would be welcomed into her life and family. Never once did Janelle think of another choice. At least not until her treatment that day. As she left the school office, she was dazed by what had happened and how disrespectfully she had been treated. She walked outside with her classroom materials clutched in her arms, tears rolling down her cheeks. She painfully recalls how for the first time in her life she thought, “Maybe I should have had an abortion. If so, this would not be happening. No one would know. I would not have to feel this embarrassment and hurt.”

Each time she tells this story and remembers these thoughts, tears fall. Her baby is due this June.
Abortion is such a tragedy in our lives. Some of our Bishops, including Archbishop Chaput, have chosen abortion to be the “issue of choice,” the overriding moral issue of today’s political and moral scene. This is the issue on which all else seems to turn. Yet when faced with the situation of a woman who became pregnant, and then chose to do the “right thing,” the response was not supportive but punitive. How, when this woman chose to continue her pregnancy, can “the warriors of righteousness” treat her with disrespect? Where was the respect for her life, the life of her baby, her future husband, the students whom she loved? Did the Archdiocese ever ask about her well-being? her financial stability? her medical or psychological care?

We are always told that actions speak louder than words. The words say “abortion is the central issue; abortion is wrong, against the teachings of the Church, not at all respectful of life.” If that is the case, why then does sex outside of marriage take precedence, trumping the “central issue” of abortion? The diocese’s action speaks volumes. One lesson might be: if you find yourself pregnant, want to keep your job and be treated respectfully, quietly go “take care of it.” No one will be the wiser and your life can go on. In a school that has a high single-parent population, what was the message to parents and students about the value of being a single mother? Many students are abandoned by people they love. Now these students are abandoned again, this time by a teacher they loved.

Another question arises regarding men and their part in the pregnancy issue. Are the men in our schools and in our Church asked if they ever impregnated a woman outside of marriage? Are they vulnerable to the experience of being shamed and fired from their jobs? In John 8, the Pharisees bring only the woman before Jesus. What happened to the man caught in the “very act of adultery”?

All the moral teachings of our Church need to be proclaimed and hopefully heard. However, when they are applied to real persons, to the walking temples of Christ, his love and respect must also play a prominent part.

How would Mary, another young, single, pregnant woman, have been treated today in the church bearing her son’s name?

Birth Announcement from the August/September 2004 Issue

It’s A Girl!!!
Leaven welcomes Jordan Evelyn, born on June 15, 2004. She was 7 lb 7oz, and 19.5 in. long. Readers may remember her story from the last issue. Her mother Janelle was fired from her teaching job in a Catholic school because she was pregnant and unmarried. The proud mom writes, “She is the most precious baby...and I thank God every day for giving me such a gift of joy.” If you have not yet made your tax-deductible contribution to the Welcome Baby fund, please send it now to: Caring Pregnancy Center, 1275 Centaur Village Dr., Lafayette CO 80026. Mark your check: Janelle’s baby.

Update on Janelle from the June/July 2007 Issue

Happy Birthday Jordan!

In June, this beautiful little girl will celebrate her third birthday. While this may seem an unremarkable occasion to some, it is actually quite a miraculous event. Some of our readers may remember the story (see above) about how Jordan’s mother, Janelle, was fired from her job at an archdiocesan elementary school when it was discovered that this unmarried teacher was pregnant.

Recently, as Janelle and her now husband were packing up to move to a bigger house, she came across the copy of Leaven featuring her story and wrote to us. Here is some of what she had to say:

“My heart goes out to any woman that becomes pregnant and instead of celebrating it is told that she has done something wrong, a sin…When I think that I almost destroyed [my daughter’s] life before it had begun to keep myself a good Catholic in the Archdiocese’s eyes, I just get sick. I hope that the article helped others to know that they are not alone.

“I [also] remembered all of the wonderful letters and money that so many readers contributed. Never once did I thank any of them because I was so busy trying to hide and forget what had happened. So now, as if it were a sign, I would like to take this opportunity to thank all who put me in their prayers. Although I kept silent, your words and kindness were the only things helping me to move on. I still have every letter.

“I now teach fifth grade, and my daughter is healthy and beautiful. I have forgiven the Archdiocese, but the anger does not allow me to forget. Love to all mothers, Janelle”

Leaven wishes Jordan the happiest of birthdays and continued blessings for Janelle and her husband!

 

 

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