Does this sound controversial? There is no reason why it should. If you refer to someone as a discriminating person, you mean that he/she is able to note small differences and to make sound judgments based on them. It is a compliment. So, why has ‘discrimination’ become a dirty word in popular talk? Undoubtedly because discrimination has often taken place (say between men and women or between one race and another) in circumstances where there was no justification for it. This led to discrimination being thought of as bad and to be condemned.
In fact there is nothing wrong with the idea of discrimination itself, provided there is a sound reason for it in the particular circumstances. If you have that sound reason, you are a discriminating person, who deserves to be complimented on it.
The business of discrimination has come to public notice recently in connection with the processes by which children are adopted. Parliament has passed regulations which demand that the selection of adoptive parents must be made without discrimination between heterosexual and homosexual applicants. Thus two homosexual applicants of the same sex must be given equal treatment to a heterosexual man and woman in the selection process.
Our Catholic Children’s Societies have done very good work in the adoptive field. The Society, which works for our own Diocese of Southwark (and for the Dioceses of Arundel and Brighton and of Portsmouth) employs over 40 people in adoptive work, so its ability to continue to function in this role is of real importance. Of course our Children's Societies have always discriminated in favour of heterosexual couples as adoptive parents - and rightly so in my opinion. If we are to justify such discrimination to ourselves, we have to be clear about what are our reasons for it. I have not asked any of our Children’s Societies for their reasons, but I express my own thoughts on the matter as follows:
(1) God created the human race so that natural parents had to be a man and a woman, thus setting the scene for a family in which the children experience care from a person of each sex.
(2) If you don't believe in God, talk instead of Nature. If God and/or Nature have set this pattern for the care of children, is not that a good reason to emulate it?
(3) My own common sense tells me that children benefit from guidance given by a male and a female mentor in the intimacy of the family. Whilst this benefit is inevitably not present in a single parent family, it is desirable to seek it, whenever it is practicable to do so. The male and the female influence will often differ and be complementary.
(4) My own experience both as a child and as an adult confirm what my common sense has already asserted.
What then is the situation, in which our Catholic Children's Societies find themselves in relation to their adoption work? Either they must conform to the new regulations and operate in future making no distinction at all between heterosexual and homosexual adoptive parents or they must close down their adoption work.
In either case a tragedy unfolds. Under the first option some children may have to be placed with two parents of the same sex, when a heterosexual placement would have been to the children’s better advantage. Under the second option the Nation as a whole will be deprived of the good work on adoptions, which our Children’s Societies have been doing over a long period. Are there any other courses of action available? Not as far as I know.
Why have our legislators imprisoned us within these options? It seems to be that the ‘in any circumstances’ brigade has won the day against all reasoned opposition. What then is the way forward? Our Bishops after taking advice will make the ultimate decision, probably quite soon. I don’t envy them the choice they have to make. They deserve our prayers.
Finally, dear reader, may I ask whether you agree or disagree with what I have written? It would be interesting to get a take on how the Catholic Body in Selsdon reacts to these matters. Please write a note to the Editor to express your views.
David Barrett