VA: Catholic Media Endorses Anti-Nickname Policy

via Zoey Maraist in the Arlington Catholic Herald, a Catholic newspaper serving Arlington, VA

The article opens by quoting a Catholic bishop who spoke approvingly, on a podcast, about VA Governor Glenn Youngkin’s controversial proposal to roll back policies currently directing schools to protect the privacy of youth who say they are transgender and request a different name, but ask their teachers not to tell their parents.

the sensitive and critical issue here is if a schoolkid can use a nickname

The Catholic religious tradition is an old and storied one, with a plethora of arcane rules and practices. And so I cannot say for certain whether it is against doctrine for a Catholic to use a nickname. However, if it is, I feel sure the news would come as a surprise to many of my relatives. My grampie Jack, my uncle Lou, my gramma Phillipa (who went by Phyllis), my grampa Pitsy, my cousin Jeannie, my aunt Sister Dr. Marion (who has always gone by Auntie Ming to family), and my mother’s second cousin, Sister Marie of the Blessed Sacrament (her birth name was Kathleen), would surely all be at least a little bit surprised to learn of this requirement of their religion.

It’s also hard not to wonder: Where was this overwelming concern for the desires of parents of schoolchildren was back when my poor relatives were being smacked around by nuns throughout their education? Certainly it stands to reason that if a parent needs to know before a child tries out a different name at school, then parents should also be allowed to give or withdraw permission for their child to be struck, or even beaten, by sadistic child-hating school authorities?

Ah, but as I said, it is an arcane and labyrinthine tradition. Perhaps Aquinas wrote a letter to a friend in a monastary back in 1267 which provided firm philosophical reasoning for why Catholics must never countenance transgender nicknames, but regular beatings would be perfectly acceptable.

I don’t think he did, but if he did, I’m sure the Catholic press will shortly dig it up and publish it.