A letter to the parents of Catholic school students in Tasmania detailing a list of grievances by the archbishop, including that the church "cannot stand as we experience our freedoms being taken from us", has been criticised by politicians andLGBTIQA+ advocates.
The letter, titled "We are Salt to the Earth" and dated May 2, was first sent to Guilford Young College students last week, but has since been forwarded to at least four other Catholic schools in the state.
Archbishop Julian Porteous takes aim at "radicalised transgender lobby" groups, legal abortion access, voluntary assisted dying and euthanasia, same-sex marriage, and more.
"What we are now witnessing in our Australian society is the imposition of certain ideological positions on social and moral questions by means of legislation," thearchbishop wrote.
"Over the last 30-40 years we have witnessed an organised campaign to overturn the traditional Christian understanding of sex and sexuality in western society. This activist work culminated in the 2017 change to the legal definition of marriage to allow same sex couples to marry, following a public plebiscite."
Archbishop Porteous said: "Since this time we have seen the growth in what has been referred to as the 'woke' movement, seeking to overturn other traditional values and beliefs."
"This has included the push for 'diversity and inclusivity' training in the corporate sector and the attack on the biological reality of being male or female through a radicalised transgender lobby."
Under a subheading "Enough is enough",Archbishop Porteous wrote: "As the Church we cannot stand by as we experience our freedoms being taken from us."
"The time has come to take a clear stand and say, 'enough is enough'. We do this not just for our own sake, but because we believe that Christian teaching is true and offers the only way for individuals, families and societies to fully flourish," he said.
"This letter has a number of misinformation and disinformation, and also some hom*ophobic and transphobic beliefs in it," Equality Tasmania president Rowan Richardson said.
"The views that are expressed in the letter are draconian and totally out of touch with what actually we need to do to make young people feel safe in schools and ready to learn."
Mr Richardson — a transgender man, and schoolteacher — said the letter created "a climate where young people don't feel safe to explore who they are".
Equality Tasmania said it would write to all Catholic schools that distributed the archbishop's letter asking for a right of reply.
Letter says parents unhappy with teachings should remove students
In the letter, Archbishop Porteous said staff or students who disagreed with the teachings of the Catholic Church were free to move to a different school.
"If they initially can accept the Catholicity of the school but later find that their personal views are at variance with those of the Catholic faith, then it would only make sense they should seek an alternative educational institution more aligned with their views," he wrote.
Independent Tasmanian MP Kristie Johnston, whose child attends a Catholic school and received the letter, said she was "deeply disturbed" by its contents.
"What [Archbishop Porteous] has said is nothing short of hateful speech," Ms Johnston said.
"You can imagine how deeply hurtful this must be to a young person questioning their sexual identity, to receive a letter from the archbishop saying and demonising them, saying that they're not welcome in their local school."
"Where the Catholic system education system receives government funding, then I'm very concerned that we have government funding going to a school or to a system which condones this kind of breach of anti-discrimination laws."
Tasmanian Greens leader Rosalie Woodruff also condemned the letter and said she would consider what the next step should be.
"It clearly is a breach of, in our view, anti-discrimination laws," Ms Woodruff said.
"To call out people who are living their lives — trans people, non-married people, people who have sex outside of marriage — and to essentially demonise them … it has no place in Tasmania."
In a statement, thearchdiocese of Hobart said: "Archbishop Porteous wrote a pastoral letter that was sent to Catholic parishes and Catholic schools.
"The letter expresses his concern about threats to religious freedom from the Albanese Government's proposed legislation. In particular, the letter expresses the Archbishop's concern about the freedom of Catholic institutions to teach and uphold the Catholic faith."
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