Jawed Anwar

 On Oct. 31, Education Minister Stephen Lecce expected the Toronto Catholic District School Board (TCDSB) to comply with the “human rights code” on issues such as gender expression, gender identity, marital status, and family status. 

On Nov. 8 at nearly 2 am (The meeting started on Nov. 7, 7:15 pm), the resolution finally passed eight to four trustee members. They added the term “gender identity,” “gender expression,” “marital status” and “family status.” They abandoned their previous Catholic code of Conduct on marriage and family. 

Trustees Joe Martino, Markus De Domenico, Ida Li Preti, Maria Rizzo, Norm Di Pasquale, Daniel Di Giorgio, and Angela Kennedy voted in favour of the change in the code of Conduct.

Trustees Michael Del Grande, Teresa Lubinski, Garry Tanuan and Nancy Crawford voted against the change.

I attended the meeting in support of our Catholic brothers and sisters who are opposing this change. I was clapping on every presentation from the Catholic side. 

The organized minority of LGBTQ were present there to voice for “inclusion.” 

Several Trustees sound liberal in their speeches. I observed if elected Trustees didn’t trust in Catholic faith and values how they can maintain Catholic values in Catholic schools.  

In the 2018 Ontario Election, Ontario Progressive Conservative leader Doug Ford promised Catholic Boards (and Ontario parents) that he would fix the sex-ed curriculum and liberal gender theories in Public funded schools. But after the election, he proved that he was more liberal than the Liberal Party. His promise was just to fetch religious and faith-based votes.   

Now, Toronto Catholic Board shredded its own subcommittee report; Catholic Education and Living our Catholic Values voted 4-1 against including those four terms in its code of Conduct. 

Gender ideology is a term that some in the Catholic and Protestant churches use to describe the separation of the concepts of gender and biological sex in today’s secular society —they believe that it contradicts traditional Christian values.  

“Conservative” education minister Lecce said, “We’re going to continue to advance that message and will be watching in the coming weeks,” “I want kids to feel safe.” 

He accomplished his task by pressurizing and influencing the board. 

Delegates’ argument in favour of change;

 “Every single person is welcome in the Church, the same way that Jesus welcomed every single person into his fellowship,” he said. “We must take the same approach. We must, of course, make everybody feel that they belong, and make everybody feel that they are welcome.”

Delegates’ argument against the change;

“Issues of family status, gender identity and gender expression – despite being protected grounds under the Ontario Human Rights Code – are contrary to the Catholic doctrine, which only recognizes two genders and sees marriage as between a man and a woman.”

“As a Catholic parent, we are concerned that our government and our society is taking away our rights as parents to raise our children according to our Catholic values. This assault on our freedom is glossed over with words like inclusion and tolerance – values that are already enshrined in Church teachings.”

I met several Catholic parents who attended the meeting as observers. They were extremely sentimental. 

Mary, a parent, started crying while talking about her concern about her four children going to Catholic school. 

Parents believe that their children are not spiritually safe, even in their own religious Catholic schools now. An organized tiny minority controlled the power and evaded the constitutional right of freedom of practicing and educating religion and traditional family life.  

Christian religious leaders surrendered to the “desire” worshippers.

The Archdiocese of Toronto had already approved the “new language.”    

I believe Christian brothers and sisters lost the battle because they lost the message of Jesus. They confused the message of his truth and guidance with love. Jesus loved the guided and truthful ones, not shaitan (satan), and satanic acts and practices.

Those Muslims who follow Islam of the Quran and Sunnah are Christian’s real friends. Muslims practice the same teachings Jesus brought forward. Muslims follow the same Sharia (divine laws) Jesus and Moses brought to this world.

Our Christian brothers and sisters are unaware of what Sharia stands for. That’s why they fiercely oppose the term. We Muslims also never educated them. 

Allah (God) created two genders; male and female. We call it Sharia.

The defect in any organ of a person doesn’t change the gender. We call it Sharia.

The sexual relationship must be under the contract of marriage. We call it Sharia.

The marriage is only between a man and a woman. We call it Sharia.

The purpose of marriage and family is to raise the children. We call it Sharia.

In Britain, Muslims and Jews joined together and boycotted the schools when they enforced the same system there. As a result, the government withdrew the system/curriculum. 

If parents of Ontario of all faith groups could do the same till their demand is not fulfilled, the government will have no other option to bow down. 

jawed@seerahwest.com