Catholic board counting on 'cooperation' over religious events

The Huron-Superior Catholic District School Board is not expecting a recent court ruling to affect student participation in religious activities held within its schools.

It was announced last week that the Ontario Superior Court ruled in favour of Brampton parent Oliver Erazo, who wanted to pull his son Jonathan out of attending religious events, such as mass and retreats, held by the Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board’s Notre Dame Catholic School.

Erazo, a non-Catholic, sent his son to Notre Dame because he feels it is the best school closest to the family home.

John Stadnyk, HSCDSB director of education, said there have been no requests from any local, non-Catholic parents to have their children excused from religious activities within Huron-Superior secondary schools.

“We’ve had an excellent spirit of cooperation…non-Catholic students have been welcomed into our school community and have always been very respectful of our traditions which include mass and retreats,” Stadnyk said after Wednesday’s regular monthly meeting of HSCDSB trustees.  

“In our own community we’ve had that spirit of cooperation and respect for our Catholic traditions,” Stadnyk said.

When asked by SooToday.com how the Huron-Superior Board would react to an action similar to that taken in Brampton, Stadnyk said “our plan is to stay the course and we’ll appeal to that sense of cooperation and respect.”

In Ontario, non-Catholics may attend Catholic high schools but traditionally have had to attend school masses.

At the elementary school level in Ontario, non-Catholic parents must agree to their children participating in Catholic religious activities.