Christian cshool punishes student for choosing life over abortion

[Johan]

A Christian School Won't Let This Pregnant Student Walk At Graduation & Their Reason Is So Upsetting


Maryland high school student Maddi Runkles, 18, is a senior with a 4.0 GPA. She’s also expecting a baby boy in September. Runkles’ story is going viral because her small Christian high school won’t let the pregnant student walk at graduation. The official reason, according to the school’s administration, is simple: “Immorality.” Bustle reached out to Heritage Academy for comment; the school referred us back to previous statements made by administrator David Hobbs. His official statement can be found here.

Runkles has attended Heritage Academy, a Christian school with 175 students located in Hagerstown, Maryland, since 2009. According to The New York Times, the school has a nine-point “statement of faith” barring “intimate sexual activity ... engaged in outside of the marriage commitment between a man and a woman.”

Runkles appears to have been a model student: In addition to her good grades, she was president of the student council, and was involved in other school organizations and sports teams. That all changed when she informed the school that she was pregnant in February. The baby’s father is not a high school student, and Runkles does not have plans to marry him.

At first, the administration suspended her and required that she finish her last semester of high school from home. She was also removed from her posts on student council and other school organizations.

After her family appealed the decision, Runkles was allowed to return to school following a brief suspension, but she was informed that she would not be allowed to attend her graduation ceremony. In protest, Runkles' father has resigned from his seat on the Heritage Academy board, and her parents have removed her and her brother from the school.

Heritage Academy principal David Hobbs has stood by the administration’s decision, citing what he describes as Runkles’ “immorality” again and again. “Maddi is being disciplined, not because she’s pregnant, but because she was immoral,” he wrote in an open letter. He clarified that she will receive her diploma, though she will not attend graduation. “Heritage is also pleased that she has chosen to not abort her son. However, her immorality is the original choice she made that began this situation,” he continued.

“We love Maddi Runkles,” Hobbs wrote. “The best way to love her right now is to hold her accountable for her immorality that began this situation.” He also told The Washington Post, “Maddi made a grievous choice. We do believe in forgiveness, but forgiveness does not mean there’s no accountability.”

As The New York Times and Slate have pointed out, Runkles’ story reveals a tension at the heart of a religious and socially conservative community that simultaneously regards sex out of wedlock as shameful and is staunchly pro-life. While the conservative Heritage Academy is punishing Runkles for the “immorality” of engaging in pre-marital sex, pro-life organizations have argued that, by shaming her for having sex, the school is pushing her toward abortion. The Runkles have sought support from the pro-life organization Students for Life. “Some pro-life people are against the killing of unborn babies, but they won’t speak out in support of the girl who chooses to keep her baby,” Maddi Runkles told The New York Times. “Honestly, that makes me feel like maybe the abortion would have been better. Then they would have just forgiven me, rather than deal with this visible consequence.”

Runkles told BuzzFeed News that she doesn’t feel her school approached her violation of the code of conduct fairly. “They say it’s because I was immoral sexually, but there are kids at my school who have been caught drinking at parties, and they were suspended for one day," she said. “But I didn’t break the law. I just had sex before marriage, which they see as the worst thing you can possibly do.”

Runkles hopes that she can use her experience to help other teen mothers. “My goal is to make people in the pro-life and Christian community realize that you can be against the killing of babies, but then when the girl chooses to keep her baby and her situation doesn’t meet your standards, you can’t just throw her out,” she told BuzzFeed News. “That defeats the whole purpose of being pro-life.”

Runkles said that she still plans to pursue a college degree next fall. Though she’ll be missing her high school’s graduation ceremony next week, her family plans to hold one for her in June.

https://www.bustle.com/p/a-christia...graduation-their-reason-is-so-upsetting-60434

Pre-marital sex = immoral
abortion = immoral
pre-marital prenancy = immoral

Then, if case a girl makes a mistake, has premarital sex and becomes pregnant, she will be punished twice : 1) For having premiarital sex 2) for having an abortion or for being preganant. That's wrong.
You want to punish her for having pre-martital sex, ok, fine. But you should also support her in her choice to keep the baby. Because, according to your stanndarts she made the wrong choice by having pre-marital sex and she should be sanctioned for that but she also made the right choice by keeping he baby ans she should receive some support for that.
I though the christian God was all about Love, Mercy and Forgiveness...

 

[Jack Davenport]

At least they didn't kick her out of school. They could have.

There are certain things that are unacceptable at a Christian school and having a child out of wedlock is one of them.
Do you not think that the student walking across the stage with a baby bump is undermining what they teach?
The reason that she was allowed to graduate at all is because she didn't terminate the pregnancy.

 

[sean miguel]

If she were a muslim, she'd have been honor-killed by her father and/or brothers. Nevermind not being able to attend school in the first place under sharia.

But Christianity is intolerant.

 

[Jack Davenport]

Not a word from Johan on how female students are treated at Madrasas by the few that even allow women to receive an education.

I don't even want to think what would happen to a Muslim girl student that shamed herself or blasphemed the teachings of Muhammad.

 

[bobjustbob]

Fuck that school. They couldn't do that to a male student. Do the teachers and staff have to hold to these standards too? Cast the first stone.

 

[Johan]

Not a word from Johan on how female students are treated at Madrasas by the few that even allow women to receive an education.

Education, particulary girl's education is a major issue in many countries, it would take me days to tamlk aboiut every incident.
But when things like this happen in western civilised countries, it is important to report it cause that kind of things shouldn't happen here. We are supposed to lead by example.

Juust because education is a major issue in muslim countries doesn't mean we shouldn't talk about things that goes wrong is christian education.

Do you not think that the student walking across the stage with a baby bump is undermining what they teach?

If she had been allowed to attend, I think she would have been much more criricizec for her "immoral" behaviour than the school would have for having of of its students having such an "immoral" behaviour.
Also, if the school chooses to publicize this, to annouced that that this girl got punished for her promiscuity but that the school choosed to support her in her choice not ot have an abortion it would have been good for them.

Since that girl was such a good student and so involved the the school, have her making a speech about how immoral she behaved, how much regret what she did, how she accepted to be punished and how she asks for forgiveness to God, the other student, the school and the parents but also how her faith and the values that the school teached her helped her to choose to keep that baby instead of having an abortion, which would have ben another terrible mistake, how much thankfull she is for the school for supporting that choice, how she think this baby is a gift from God and how she hopes they will all love him as much as she already does.
That's how you turn something wrong -premarital prenancy in a christian school- into something positive.
That's how you promote christian morals and pro-life values :thumbsup:

 

[Jack Davenport]

Education, particulary girl's education is a major issue in many countries, it would take me days to tamlk aboiut every incident.
But when things like this happen in western civilised countries, it is important to report it cause that kind of things shouldn't happen here. We are supposed to lead by example.

Juust because education is a major issue in muslim countries doesn't mean we shouldn't talk about things that goes wrong is christian education.


If she had been allowed to attend, I think she would have been much more criricizec for her "immoral" behaviour than the school would have for having of of its students having such an "immoral" behaviour.
Also, if the school chooses to publicize this, to annouced that that this girl got punished for her promiscuity but that the school choosed to support her in her choice not ot have an abortion it would have been good for them.

Since that girl was such a good student and so involved the the school, have her making a speech about how immoral she behaved, how much regret what she did, how she accepted to be punished and how she asks for forgiveness to God, the other student, the school and the parents but also how her faith and the values that the school teached her helped her to choose to keep that baby instead of having an abortion, which would have ben another terrible mistake, how much thankfull she is for the school for supporting that choice, how she think this baby is a gift from God and how she hopes they will all love him as much as she already does.
That's how you turn something wrong -premarital prenancy in a christian school- into something positive.
That's how you promote christian morals and pro-life values :thumbsup:

I actually went to a Christian private school.

Theology and Biblical teachings are as much of a focus as other curriculum.

We also had chapel each day and prayer was a part of our school day.

Premarital sex and conceiving children out of wedlock is forbidden but is forgiven if the person repents.

The school was under no obligation to send a mixed message because one person made a decision against what the church teaches.

Christian reaction to things like this are tame compared to Muslim reactions.

Why aren't you on a mission to change Islamic teaching and inconguency as you are Christians?

We know why. Because you dont stand a chance in doing it even among the most "moderate" of Muslims.

 

[Johan]

Why aren't you on a mission to change Islamic teaching and inconguency as you are Christians?

Because I've been raised as a christian (a catholic to be specific). Because I've been a christian until 24. Because I've been teached about christian values. Because I know very littlke about Islam (but that very little is still much more than most of americans).
Because, just like it's up to christians (and to those who were raised as so and then became agnostics or atheists) to change christianity, it's up to muslims and to people who were raised as muslims and then gave up Islam) to change Islam.

You can't decide what people stand for, they have to make that choice for themselves. We tried to bring democracy instead of tyranny to Iraq, Afghanistan, Lybia, etc. We ended up with Daech.
In 1775, did someone came to fight the the red coats for you ? No, you guys took that on yourselves. America's freedom was paid in American blood, that why you guys cherrish it so much : because you had to conquer it by yourselves.
Now, because Lybia, Iraq or Afhanistan did not had to pay such a terrible price for their freedeom, because it was handed to them, they do not cherrish it and they give it up in a blink of an eye.

Premarital sex and conceiving children out of wedlock is forbidden but is forgiven if the person repents.

The article seems to indicate she repents. But still they don't seem to forgive her.

But, in that article tha par thaty shocks me the most is

“Some pro-life people are against the killing of unborn babies, but they won’t speak out in support of the girl who chooses to keep her baby,” Maddi Runkles told The New York Times. “Honestly, that makes me feel like maybe the abortion would have been better. Then they would have just forgiven me, rather than deal with this visible consequence.”

Runkles told BuzzFeed News that she doesn’t feel her school approached her violation of the code of conduct fairly. “They say it’s because I was immoral sexually, but there are kids at my school who have been caught drinking at parties, and they were suspended for one day," she said. “But I didn’t break the law. I just had sex before marriage, which they see as the worst thing you can possibly do.”

By being that harsh on her, by not supporting her choice to keep the baby, they've brought a christian girl to think that maybe she should have aborted, that it would have been better for her.