By DONALD DeMARCO
Given the upheaval following the overturning of Roe v. Wade, let us imagine a classroom teacher trying to ascertain the mindset of his students by giving them a multiple-choice test.
The first question: Why do you think the five justices reversed Roe v. Wade?
a) Because they are all Catholic and cannot think for themselves.
b) Because they are right wing fanatics.
c) Because they are anti-woman and opposed to women’s rights.
d) Because they are extremely conservative and against progress.
e) Because they recognized that the Constitution had no provision for abortion.
If you answered “a,” “b,” “c,” or “d,” what response should be made?
a) Abort the Constitution.
b) Vandalize Catholic Churches and pregnancy centers.
c) Pack the Court with pro-abortionists.
d) Assassinate the five justices.
e) Accept the simple fact that there is no provision in the Constitution for abortion.
The teacher will understand that he has a tough road to hoe if his students, like so many of the protesters, choose any of the first four options in either of the first two questions. The implications of such choices are extremely dire. They represent throwing out the Constitution, denigrating the Supreme Court, replacing reason with violence, affirming prejudice, eliminating law and order, denying that the unborn have a right to life, vilifying pro-lifers, disrupting family unity, and rejecting the right of the father to protect his own unborn child. This is truly the road to nihilism.
The notion that Catholics cannot think for themselves has been adequately repudiated throughout history. The Church spearheaded the formation of universities and has given to the world an untold number of Catholic individuals who have excelled in philosophy, theology, the arts and sciences. Moreover, the Church has always emphasized the importance of virtue. A true Catholic is hardly a mindless puppet, but a person of honesty and integrity. These are not virtues that the world promotes. Consider commercial advertising and politics where lies, distortions, and misrepresentations are de rigueur.
Catholics have been objects of prejudice throughout history. Consider the following case. In 1859, Francois Norbert Blanchet, the first archbishop of Oregon City, Ore., invited 12 Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary to leave Quebec to carry out their education ministry in his diocese. Their mission was directed toward the full development of the human person through education, social justice, contemplation, and the arts.
The good Sisters did not think that they were imposing foreign ideologies or un-American ideas on the Oregonian children they taught. They saw themselves as educating their students to help them become mature, educated persons who would become socially responsible citizens in the world. The Ku Klux Klan, however, saw them from a rather different perspective and sought to protect Oregonian children from what they believed to be alien and un-American ideas.
In the early 1920s, Oregon was the home to approximately 14,000 members of the Ku Klux Klan, including the mayor of Portland, many politicians, and police officers. They regarded themselves as “real” Americans and felt duty bound to target the Catholic Church, the largest provider of private education. Fiery crosses and marches in Ku Klux Klan regalia were common sights in Oregon at that time. Thus began a heated clash between a form of nationalism, as narrowly conceived by the Klan, and religious pluralism that seemed protected by the United States Constitution.
The Klan was instrumental in electing Democrat Walter M. Pierce as governor of Oregon. The Klan played an important role in getting The Oregon Compulsory Education Act passed in 1922. The Act would compel all children between the ages of eight and sixteen to attend public schools. If implemented, it would mean the dissolution of all Catholic schools in the state of Oregon, along with all other private schools. The Sisters, who, at that time, operated many schools in Oregon, did not sit idly by. They sued and the case was ultimately heard by the United States Supreme Court.
After deliberating for 10 weeks, the Supreme Court issued its unanimous decision on June 1, 1925. In overturning the Oregon statute, the Court stated as follows: “The fundamental theory of liberty upon which all governments in this Union repose excludes any general power of the state to standardize its children by forcing them to accept instruction from public teachers only. The child is not the mere creature of the state; those who nurture him and direct his destiny have the right, coupled with the high duty, to recognize and prepare him for additional obligations” (Pierce v. Society of Sisters).
Thus, the Society of Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary defeated the Ku Klux Klan and it was instrumental in restoring Catholic and other forms of private education in the state of Oregon. It also proved to be the basis for guaranteeing parents the right to direct the religious upbringing of their children.
The Klan, though unhappy about having the Oregon Compulsory Education Act being overturned, was obliged to accept it. The Catholic nuns were vindicated and their broad approach to education was judged by the Supreme Court as being consistent with the Constitution.
The temper of the protesters at the moment concerning the overturning of Roe v. Wade is one that is both prejudicial against Catholics, and contrary to the Supreme Court’s decision in Pierce v. Society of Sisters. Catholics, despite their great contributions to America, have had a difficult history. Nonetheless, they have always shown the resilience to overcome whatever prejudice was leveled against them. One anticipates Catholics will once again emerge victorious in today’s imbroglio.
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