Featured Former coach of the year fired from Christian school for out-of-wedlock pregnancy

I think gb is just looking for a fight...

That said two thoughts:

1. If she was on ministry staff at your local church (as a ministry assistant, or ministry director, or pastor) and this happened what would your reaction be?

2. The school should, in dismissing her, offer an opportunity for mentoring, discipleship, and accountability. Obviously, in reading her thoughts on "interpretations" she hasn't had much. She should also be given the grace of the rest of the academic years contract and insurance benefits.


To add: We had something like this happen at the last church I served. One of the guys leading a worship team went out and got a girl pregnant and was sleeping with several others. When we confronted him, and dismissed him on these grounds, he looked at us and said, "Well someone should have told me you guys have a problem with sex before marriage." Believe it or not, but the rising Millennial generation is highly biblically and theologically illiterate generation in a long time. They don't know what the Bible says and don't care to go look it up. Their views on these matters, pre-marital relations, are informed by society not biblical theology. We shouldn't be surprised when this happens. But when it does we need to provide a means of care and grace that surpasses all expectation.

 

I Agree....

....when I was accepted in the university that I went on to receive my degree with, I signed an enrollment agreement, and one of the clauses was a moral's clause.

Had I broken the clause [my promise to live up to what the university expected of their students] I would have been asked to leave, and morally I would have had no reason to complain.

This is life, and that coach knew what she was doing on both ends of the clause, and she sinned, in their eyes...

I agree, "End of story!"

 

She signed a contract.
She violated the contract.
She suffered the consequences.

End of story.

 

Was this during the one-day "revival" of 1995 at SWBTS when people were lining up to the microphones to publicly repent of sins (many trying to "top" the previously confessed sins)?

Actually, she could have had an abortion and no one would have been the wiser, except for God. She could have avoided all of the trouble and scandal, but she had the audacity to allow the child to live and expose her guilt.

Both participated in sexual immorality. One was faced with a pregnancy and the choice of whether or not to allow her child to live.

But the former teacher should have known that sexual relations before marriage were considered wrong by the school and it would violate the morals clause. Churches and religious institutions have the legal and moral right to hold those standards over their employees. She has no legal basis to complain or challenge their decision.

Yes, absolutely. This is something of a pet peeve of mine.

I have a friend who became pregnant by her louse of a boyfriend. She had a seizure (she's epileptic) and he used that opportunity to have sex with her since she had not previously given into his pressures. She became pregnant from the rape (yes, it was rape) and wouldn't even consider abortion since she is ardently pro-life (she herself was adopted from a teen who was pregnant out of wedlock in the mid-1960s). Unfortunately, she didn't press charges against the boyfriend, she is WAY too forgiving.

Predictably, she received nothing but condemnation from Christians who condemned her for her "immorality" and it drove her away from church for a number of years. She is still scorned by some of the more religious members and treated like a second-class Christian more than 20 years later.

I do to.

I understand the struggle (if there is a struggle) for the school, but at the same time they could be modeling redemption for the teacher in some way.

In a church setting, I have been a part of helping unwed pregnant teens and teen mothers get what they need to support their children. It would also be worthwhile to get members of the youth group involved in ministering their their peers who are in that situation. It's not a glamourous way for a teen to live and I believe it is much more of an inducement to avoid pre-marital sexual relations than any sermon or Bible study could be.

 

As I see it the question is if an individual in a leadership/mentoring position over teenagers (who are at the age when the hormones are afire enough as it is) should be allowed to keep her position after showing poor judgement by engaging in immortality.

Most Christian schools that I know of have some type of morality standard. Assuming this one does and she violated it, it's a no-briner. She should be let go.

The priority should be the kids, not her. Were she allowed to remain, the perception would be one of endorsement of her actions and morality.

 

The purpose of this school is to teach/minister to/ educate the CHILDREN, not to supply this woman with a job. The school is there for the kids, not the teachers. She sinned (probability would suggest repeatedly, unless we are to think that this was a one-time deal and she had some sheer bad luck) rendering herself a bad example of Christian conduct. Her contract said that she could not do so. She broke said contract. Her sin was fun for a season, now she is fired......fine. She made her choices, she deals with the consequences. The thing that says the most about her character rather than the pregnancy is her lawsuit against the school, this is NOT a repentant woman IMAO (in my arrogant opinion)

 

I don't disagree with you. However, setting aside this particular person and using this as a case study, I think this situation provided an opportunity for the school to make two or more strong statements.


First, she could have been relieved of her duties as coach/teacher because of her public sin and breach of contract. Second, in show of support for the child and in extending grace and reconciliation to the woman she could have been offered another support type position - not a mentoring/leadership position - while she is counseled, repents and eventually restored if her subsequent actions indicate repentance. In doing so the school leadership and the teacher recognizes the sin for what it is and makes a statement that grace and reconciliation has a place in Christian institution and they will support a woman who is one of their own, who chooses to have the baby rather than erase the shame or inconvenience through abortion. As other mentioned in local church context, health care is still provided for the mother and child with some income is still provided in exchange for services she provides in another position. If it becomes clear that the mother is unrepentant then she was a bad hire to begin with for a Christian school and her contract is not renewed for the succeeding school year.


It is possible that the school offered something like this and she declined. I don’t know.

 

I agree with these statements.

However, the school is demonstrating "law" to the students by their actions. That's not a bad thing. But I think it is also important for the school to demonstrate "grace" and "redemption" to the students, FOR THE BENEFIT of the students, as well as this woman and her child.

There's no shortage of institutions, especially religious institutions, demonstrating law to young people. There's a tremendous shortage of institutions, especially religious institutions, demonstrating grace and redemption.

I don't know any details other than what has been reported on the news (who knows how accurate that is?), but this is certainly was an opportunity to demonstrate grace and redemption. Unfortunately, now that it has hit the news, I doubt the school would feel like it has the freedom to exercise grace for fear of looking like they are caving in to public opinion.

 

:thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:

 

I totally agree with you. It is a matter of a condition of employment.

From a Biblical standpoint, from my experience with these types of situations, two observations.
1. My guess is the people enforcing the rule in the contract are engaged in a sin as bad if not worse.

2. I do not think that this type of situation should ban a person from a teaching or leadership position for life. Many on this board think of this as one of those things that can be spiritually forgiven, but something a person should never be allowed to return to. I think a return to the occupation should be based on restoration to Biblical principles.

Again, this is one of those sins, like drinking, etc, that we jump on with penalties, but tend to give a wink and a nod to the gossip, and the four hundred pound glutton.

 

If she had not signed that contract she would have a case. As it stands (this assumes the news media have done a fair, accurate, and complete job in reporting this story)[Fat Chance!!!] her best bet is to find out if this discipline has been dished out fairly, equally, and consistently over previous years. Here we may have yet another example of one possible way a 'sheep gone to the wayside ' gets there. Then Jesus will leave the 99 to go bring the wayside sheep back.How many school officials and teachers there still have a job simply because they did not get caught? I'm not excusing her behavior. I am saying we should deal with this type of situation carefully. With meekness lest we also fall.

 

In this area pertaining to sexual matters the church historically has always failed the young by :
1.) Ignoring the whole subject. We tend to deny the sexuality of our children and pretend that they don't have any physical 'urges' about sex. This leaves their sex education in the hands of people who do not have a biblical base on morality. That is how the public school system was able to take it over. Parents were not taking responsibility.
2.)When it is addressed in Churches and 'Christian' households their is little, if any discussion. "This is what God says! You are to obey His commands! Period!!!
3.)These approaches help us parents to give the impression that we do not have, never have had, and hope to God we never will have any of those sinful almost demonic sexual urges, or temptations even toward our spouse.

 

:laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

Baloney.

There is no way this 'guy' didn't know sleeping around wasn't wrong, nor do I buy his story that he didn't know sex outside of marriage was wrong. Wonder if he knew lying was wrong, or any other commandments?

That's a lame copout. Sounds like he played you all just like he played those girls and you bit, and believed it. :wavey: