Hold on a minute here…..I actually have been in contact with the archdiocese down in Denver. This story really bothered me so I started calling and emailing until I got a response.
First and foremost, these parents openly came forward about their orientation and living situation during the admissions process. It was decided there and then. The child never attended the school so he wasn’t “being removed from friends, teachers and community”…..
If Catholic dogma teaches that acting on homosexual feelings is a “sin”, then why, if you don’t subscribe to this belief, would you want your child taught this. Wouldn’t the parents be hypocrites?
Maybe it’s the only good school in the area, but you can’t have it both ways.

Singling out “gay sinners” not bigotry?So the Catholic Archdiocese is singling out “gay sinners” and no others for dismissal? What about adulterers? Children who live in households where one parent cheats should be barred from attending school as well. And children who live in households where two different types of fabric are worn should be expelled at once! Make no mistake, this is the same old nonsense the Catholic Church has been engaging in for centuries. Overall, this is probably best for the child. Children need to learn how truly evil the Catholic Church is. And parents need to stop promoting the dillusion of religion to their children.  

Divorced and Protestant ParentsAlso live “in open discord with Catholic teaching in areas of faith and morals,” as do all Catholic parents who use birth control. Do we really think all these people will be denied the chance to enroll their kids, or be forced to pull their children from the school?  

Which “both ways”?

Maybe it’s the only good school in the area, but you can’t have it both ways.

Which “both ways” can’t one have it?  Can’t have both a good education for the kids and a non-totalitarian one?

Do they only allow Catholics?Setting aside the (utterly valid) discussions of Catholic parents who use birth control, are remarried, eat meat during Lent, or skip the odd Holy Day in church, do they only allow children of Catholic parents in the school?
I went to 12 years of Catholic school, and we always had a significant percentage of non-catholic students – who, by definition, had parents who weren’t living in accordance with Catholic doctrine, if only by not going to weekly Mass.
This is absurd – but will just bring the focus to the hypocrisy that much sooner. The majority of Catholics in the pews are in the “don’t really care, gay people are fine with me, don’t ask, don’t tell” sort of category, and we’ll see more and more of them standing up like this. People just don’t understand how NOT controlled by the Vatican most Catholics are.

I wonder how many children in Catholic school have adulterers, murderers, fornicators, liars, idolators, and blasphemers among their parents?  Shouldn’t those children be kicked out as well?

Catholic schools are private and entitled to discriminateAs much as this news is yet another example of the wrongheadedness of the Roman Catholic hierarchy, and of the pastor who made and implemented this decision, the decision is consistent with Catholic teaching.
It’s the underlying Catechism teaching that is the problem – the decision made here is entirely consistent with that.  It’s the same flawed underlying reasoning that caused a parish in the Bronx to expel a gay couple who got married in Canada from the choir and the church, and which was used by one of my parish priests in 1999 to ask me to leave and not come back – the common term used is “creating a scandal in the church.” (Though in my case, the Church official teaching involved was not clear, since it predated the sub secretum document on trans people, and even that document does not bar trans people who transition from being members of the Church – be that as it may, I’ve shaken their dust from my feet).
The pastor’s blog explains things as well as possible under the circumstances:

Our school is a Catholic school.  The issue is not about our not accepting “sinners.”  It is not about punishing the child for the sins of his or her parents.  It is simply that the lesbian couple is saying that their relationship is a good one that should be accepted by everyone; and the Church cannot agree to that.  People who are divorced do not say divorce is good.  There are no pro-divorce parades.  Divorce is a tragedy for everybody.  So there’s no comparing other issues to the issue of gay marriage.  Actually, by this decision we really want to protect the child and his or her parents from the necessary conflict that their relationship would bring to a clear-seeing and committed Catholic community.

In an earlier comment, HeyBudBoston overly shortens that to:

If Catholic dogma teaches that acting on homosexual feelings is a “sin”, then why, if you don’t subscribe to this belief, would you want your child taught this. Wouldn’t the parents be hypocrites?

In an indirect response to that oversimplification, there are many “cafeteria Catholics” who disagree with Church teachings that are wrong or morally evil, but who continue to practice Roman Catholicism and have their children educated inC atholic schools.
It is arguable that, confronted with a situation in which a parishioner is an outspoken member of Planned Parenthood, the pastor might taks a similar action with regard to admitting that parishioner’s children to the school, or to permitting that parishioner to take communion.  The same thing would not happen if the parishioner only quietly donated money to Planned Parenthood.  The element of “creating a scandal in the Church” would be absent.
On the other hand, there are many Catholic schools that accept children regardless of their parents’ religion.  The Church usually sees this as an opportunity to proselitize – these children are not exempted from religious education or Mass attendance, even if they can;t take communion.  
There are other Catholic parish schools where the decision in a similar matter would be different.  In those schools, the person making the decision (pastor or principal) might see it as their duty to take advantage of the opportunity to set the child against the parents, and “save” the child.
I had a Catholic education, with the exception of kindergarten and half the 5th grade, all the way through law school.  While there is a lot of good that can be said about Catholic schools, it is also true that the Church schools do indoctrinate children with Church teachings.
I strongly disagree with HeyBudBoston on the issue of the parents in this case being hypocrites – they’re merely cafeteria Catholics.  
I would, however, submit that it is likely not in the best interests of the child to send the child to a school that will teach the child the wrong and harmful teachings promulgated by the Church hierarchy.
If all the people who disagreed with Church teachings kept their children awat from Catholic schools, there would be many fewer children in those schools.

“Catholic schools are private and entitled to discriminate “Well, yes, when you’re talking about LGBT people, because we have no protections in federal law. The school – if it enrolls ANY non-Catholics or takes ANY government $$, even for free lunches – is likely bound by federal protections against discrimination based on marital status or religious lifestyle choice, so it can’t really follow through on its pledge to broadly discriminate.  

Conservative Archbishop and Conservative PastorThat’s all this is about: A conservative archbishop and conservative pastor
I live in Seattle, WA, where we still have liberal priests and a moderate bishop.  I think every Catholic school has several gay and lesbian couples–at least in the more diverse neighborhoods, I know that to be the case.
There are many sad things about this story.  One thing that I find sad is that this is in liberal Boulder, CO.  There are probably many good Catholic Christians in the Bolder area who aren’t able to nourish their faith lives because of the parish priest assignments.  This would be a less of a news story if this was in a rural community.  

I think Catholic schoolsshould make the parents of all prospective students fill out a thorough questionnaire.
1.  Do you believe that the communion wafer, which is made of bread, really turns into meat and blood at Mass?
2.  Do you believe that the Virgin Mary was really impregnated by the Holy Spirit through her right ear?
3.  Do you believe that the ghost of John Paul II really cured that French nun of Parkinson’s (even though she reportedly still has it)?
4.  Do you believe that all the priests accused of pedophilia were really innocent and were led into sin by those evil, licentious children?
5.  Do you believe that all the people who ate fish on Fridays, during the centuries when the church forbade it, are really suffering eternal torment in hell for their awful sins?
6.  Do you think the thousands upon thousands of Jews, “witches” and gay and trans people who were tortured and executed under the Inquisition deserved exactly what they got?
….And on and on.  Anyone who answers “no” to any of those questions should have their kids refused admission.  Violating Catholic doctrine is violating Catholic doctrine.

cafeteria catholicsHi Joann,
I went to Catholic school too. My parents were divorced and my mother was remarried. One day during fourth grade religion, we were being taught about mortal vs. venial sins. Being divorced and remarried was determined to be a mortal sin, and I was told that my mother would burn in hell for eternity. Unless of course my father died, at which time my mother could marry my stepfather in the church. So I went home and told my mother this, she came down to the school and we all had a talk. Bottom line –  she was gonna burn. No two ways about it. This was the church’s position. But I could stay at school. My mother reconciled this by telling me that God was good and just; that she was a good person, and that God wouldn’t have wanted her to stay in a bad marriage. Basically, my mother over-road the Catholic Church and invented her own friendlier version. An early cafeteria catholic, if you will.
But the lesson I learned from that experience and from Catholic school in general was accountability. These are the rules: if you wanna play, follow the rules. If you slip up, but are really sorry, that’s OK — welcome back. But if you decide that you do not want to play by the rules, but you still want to call yourself a Catholic, then you pay the consequences. That includes burning.
I don’t believe in the concept of “cafeteria catholic” and neither does the church. If you don’t go to church and receive communion  every week, or if you swindle people through your business, or if you are divorced and remarried, you aren’t playing by the rules.
So. I am gay and unapologetic about it. I do not attend mass. I question church dogma. What does that make me if I live a life that is inconsistent with catholic teaching? Lapsed? Cafeteria? Excommunicated? I am not sure and not trying to be glib. I think about religion a lot because of the role it plays in world politics and it really scares me.  

Let’s see, what was that in the bible again?Deuteronomy 24:16. It says, “Fathers shall not be put to death for their sons, nor sons be put to death for the fathers: every one shall be put to death for his own sins.”
Think this means that the sins of the parents shouldn’t be visited on the children?  Besides, wouldn’t you think the church would like to bring more children into their flock and money into the school?  just some things to think about…
Geekydee

“Christian” schools are NOT a good educational alternative…And you’re talking to someone who WENT to “christian” school. And the Catholic schools aren’t that much better. They focus so much on the babble bullshit that science and math are neglected. So, I would never put my kid in a place like that, and I’m wondering why these women did that. The whole “private school is a better education” is just hogwash.  

The less indoctrinated in the world, the betterchance for a true education and less of a chance for another unthinking believer.

Those parents are committing child abuseif they are sending their daughter to a school that will teach her that her parents are sinning perverts.
Of course the school is bigoted – why would they want to send their child there ?
It’s like trying to send your black child to one of those all white “private christian” schools that opened in the South during desegregation.

All the news disagrees with you.The news articles all state clearly that the child is currently a pre-schooler and was denied during the application for re-enrollment for next year.
Yes, it was during the admissions process, but it appears that the child was already a part of the school system as a preschooler and is being denied re-enrollment.
If you were told this, it appears (surprise) that the Archdiocese was twisting the truth. If they are set up a most such systems are, pre-school is a different program than kindergarten or primary grades, so in a very literal sense, the child may not have attended “the school” before, but is certainly being denied continuing on within the same system with the other students he’s been enrolled with.

Cheats?!? How about legal remarriageCatholics who remarry after a divorce are just as much adulterers as those who cheat during a marriage. Why do I suspect that the kids of blended families are welcome in the system?
They were when I went to school. Just because the parents couldn’t receive communion wasn’t supposed to kick the kids out of the Church.

Oh please.I know what you are trying to say, but you are so far off base as to be offensive.
The Church doesn’t teach any of what you list as even doctrine, much less require it as basic minimum articles of faith.
You even have the fish thing completely backwards. Going into details like what’s wrong with your #1 is clearly pointless.
The Church has many, many, things to account for, and is responsible for many ongoing evils in the world, not even beginning on the historical record (which, in grudging fairness cannot be treated as distinct from the secular standards of its time – the Church is hardly the only entity guilty of torture, for example.)
Deal with the actual evils. You don’t have to just make shit up.  

Let’s not water down child abuseSending the kids to an academically superior school, confident in their own ability to temper any bigoted messages is hardly child abuse. By that standard, allowing them to watch Fox News would be far more damaging.
Maybe it is not ideal, but there may well be solid reasons. The Catholic high school I went to had 90% of graduates go on to college, while the local public school had 80% of graduates pass the state mandated literacy test.
And, especially in grade school, but throughout the whole system, the number of times sex was discussed in any context was vanishingly small. It’s not like we had Spelling, Reading, Math, and Bigotry classes.
It’s also clear from the response that a noticeable number of the straight parents would certainly be supportive, even if the school administration isn’t. For that matter, we only know what the Diocesan policy was, not how the actual teachers the kids interact with behave.

both ways I was raised Catholic, so I have no desire to join a Jewish temple. I don’t go to my local black church and sing along either (I’m not black). I don’t belong to my local gun club either because I don’t like guns.
I am not getting your point at all.
Are you a natural antagonist?
Did anyone say you could not have a good, non-totalitarian education for your children? Why do you expect one from the Catholic church?

your educationHow sad for you.
I went to Catholic school here in MA and had none of the experiences you did.
I don’t recall a focus on “babble bullshit.” Perhaps I was too busy studying in honors biology or chemistry. Also, I was not great at algebra and had a teacher who spend EVERY DAY after school with me until I understood the concepts. And no, there was no molesting.
As far as religious messages in school, the one I took to heart, the one that was taught most at Pope John XXIII in MA, was ‘treat others as you would have them treat you.’ Judging was definitely not part of the curriculum.
I realize that this is definitely not the message being sent from what counts as mainline Protestant denominations in the media these days. But my high school days ended in the early 80s, so I guess times have changed.

Get a clueYou obviously didn’t go to Catholic school, you probably watched Jesus Camp and got some lame idea of what all Christian education is like, including Catholic.
I am gay, I went to Catholic school for 14 years until 2006, so I can say with pretty good authority what it’s like.  And yes there is plenty of religious bullshit, morality blah blah blah, but to say that they ignore the vital parts of someone’s education is equally bullshit.
I recieved a great education, without molestation, and all I had to do was put up with the occasional preachy bullshit in a religion class or when the pastor came to visit.  There lies the big difference between catholic school and christian school, catholic school has always been about education first and it makes me both sad and angry that this has changed and they have begun to punish children for who their parents are.  I had a mormon in my class in grade school for god’s sake and I remember them railing much more on that than homosexuality.  Poor kid had to sit through it, but the point being they didn’t kick him out because of his parents religion that was “contradictory to catholic teachings”.  For that matter so were a lot of our upbringings, a lot of us had single parents or divorced parents, is that going to start now too?

If you think I made this stuff up,you’re not paying attention to Holy Mother Church.  And if you have a problem with people “making shit up,” take it to the Vatican, not their critics.

Similar backgroundMy father had been married for a week before he married my mother, and obtained a civil annullment.  His ex contacted the Brookly Diocese Chancery to try to get a church annullment, but my grandmother intercepted the mail and my father never respondd, so at the time, no church annullment was granted.
My father married my mother in a civil ceremony.  While I attended Catholic School, there were issues that were over my head, that the knowledge of this later cleared up.
I felt I had a vocation to the priesthood and entered the seminary.  Only my parents and the priests knew that my acceptance was conditional, as they sought out the long-missing former wife, and pushed an annulment through (at the time in the late 1960′s it took almost three years).
I had made a decision to leave the seminary, and I told my mother on the same day that she was going to tell me about the annulment and the whole past situation from which I had been shielded.
So I went through a period of time during which I was ineligible for ordination (talk about visiting the sins of the father upon the child).  I never was ordained anyway, and under the current rules, i would not qualify because the Church considers transexual people to be “gravely disordered” and not fit for the priesthood or religious life.
I had been aware of theological errors in Church teaching as early as high school.
The theological grounding for “cafeteria Catholicism” comes from the idea that the rules with regard to what constitutes “sin” are not absolute.  For a Catholic with a grounding in the faith and an informed conscience, there are things that are not sinful, even if the weight of the hierarchy and its teachings indicates that it is sinful.
This allows people who disagree with those Church teachings that are evil and immoral and against the principles of faith and natural law, but who accept much of the rest of the teachings, to remain Catholic.  The essential is the acceptance of the Nicene Creed – anything beyond that is subject to reason and conscience.
After being tossed out of the Church, it took me some time to unravel the underlying faith.  I had already concluded that much of the moral theology was flawed.  The Church clais to possess the entirety of Truth – any error in teaching whatsoever allows all teachings to be examined, and found wanting.
When I applied reason to the faith teachings, I found many of them wanting – things that I had previously had to “suspend my disbelief” to believe.
By the time I had whittled most of it to a core of essential faith, I found a religion that fit what was left – Unitarian/Universalism.
I respect those Roman Catholics who are willing to challenge the hierarchy from within, when the hierarchy has long lost its moral compass and ability to shepherd the People of God.  Some remain in the cafeteria, others try “Catholic Lite” (liberal Episcopalian) or another mainline Protestant sect, with tachings that may be more compatible with their actual faith.