New Worcester Diocese School Policy Prohibits Gender Expression, Mandates Chastity

WORCESTER, MA — Catholic schools under the jurisdiction of the Diocese of Worcester have been ordered to update student handbooks with new policies on sexuality and gender identity, effectively banning students from same-sex relationships and activities inconsistent with the sex assigned at birth, according to the new rules.

Worcester Bishop Robert McManus notified local diocesan Catholic school leaders about the policy updates in late June. Superintendent David Perda said Tuesday the new policies will ensure a "consistent application" of the church's stance on LGBTQ+ issues across all diocesan schools.

"As the confusion about gender identity continues to proliferate, it is extremely important that we have a consistent position, as well as aligned practices, across all Catholic schools in the Diocese," the June letter from McManus to school leaders in the diocese said.

McManus said the new policies align with ideas expressed by Pope Francis, who has spoken out against "gender ideology," but has also been seen as more lenient toward the LGBTQ community compared to previous Catholic church leaders.

McManus said the Catholic church does not have to accept the "confused notions of secular gender ideology."

"We do not serve anyone’s greater good by falsifying the truth, for it is only the truth that frees us for the full life that God offers to each of us," he wrote in a preamble explaining the new policies. "Thus, when a person experiences same-sex attraction or some form of gender dysphoria, such struggles do not change the biological fact of how God created that person, and it would be untruthful for the Catholic Church or our Catholic schools to pretend otherwise."

Guillermo Creamer, a member of the Worcester Human Rights Commission and a 2023 mayoral candidate, said the new policies will hurt young gay people who look for support in adults, including in religious schools, as he did.

"I was raised Catholic and many of my morals are rooted in true Catholic teachings," Creamer said Tuesday. "I self-identify as a proud gay man whose foundation comes from my Catholic faith. Bishop McManus has proved yet again that he is disconnected from the teachings of Catholicism and instead has embraced an outdated, hate-filled rhetoric.

"It's a shame to see [McManus] so fixated on trying to set the clock backwards for LGBTQ+ Catholics," he said.

The new diocese policy on gender identity — called "gender dysphoria/transgenderism" in the handbook — says that no student can conduct themselves in a manner inconsistent with their biological sex, otherwise they might face expulsion.

"If a student’s expression of gender, sexual identity, or sexuality should cause confusion or disruption at the school, or if it should mislead others, cause scandal, or have the potential for causing scandal, then the matter will first be discussed with the student and his/her parents. If the issue is not resolved to the satisfaction of the school, whose primary goal must always be to uphold Catholic truths and principles, then the student may be dismissed from the school after the parents are first given the opportunity to withdraw the student from the school," the policy says.

The updated handbooks also include a section on what schools should do if they have to issue documents to students who have changed their names after transitioning to a different gender. The policy requires all documents to include the person's previous name — a practice referred to as "deadnaming."

GLAAD, the LGBTQ advocacy nonprofit, has said "transgenderism" is a "phony term made up by anti-transgender activists and used to dehumanize transgender people and target them." The terms "sex" and "gender" are used together in the new policy, but are recognized as separate by health professionals. Gender typically refers to how a person expresses themselves as either male, female, nonbinary or otherwise.

The new section on sexual orientation deems students "may not advocate, celebrate, or express same-sex attraction in such a way as to cause confusion or distraction in the context of Catholic school classes, activities, or events." The policy also encourages students to use the phrase “same-sex attraction” when talking about LGBTQ relationships.

Other updates to the manual include a section requiring students to practice chastity. A new section on bullying and harassment says that no student may be ostracized for their "perceived sex, sexual orientation, or gender identity."

Ray Delisle, a spokesman for the diocese, said the new policies would not extend to schools outside the local church's jurisdiction. The diocese has leased space in former Catholic school buildings to secular schools, sometimes including a clause in leases that says the buildings can't be used for anything "inconsistent with the doctrines or teachings of the Roman Catholic Church." That policy led to a dispute earlier this year between Worcester Public Schools officials and a local church monsignor over the district's new health and sex education curriculum.

Delisle said the new policies have “been sent to all schools to incorporate into their handbooks” when asked which schools will adhere to the update. There are 21 Catholic schools between Fitchburg and Webster, but not all are under the jurisdiction of the Worcester Diocese.

The policy update also follows a fight between McManus and the Nativity School in Worcester. The school flies Black Lives Matter and LGBTQ flags, and McManus told the school to remove them or have its Catholic affiliation revoked. The flags are still outside the school today after McManus followed through on that threat in June 2022.

Clarification: This story has been updated to reflect a spokesperson’s statement about which schools would include the new policies in student handbooks.