"There may well be legal issues from a secular standpoint, but that can't have the final say," he said. "If it's going to have the final say then we should change our religious rhetoric to reflect it, we should say our religious ideals are not the supreme ideals we're following."
The concept of Jesuit ideals is also the reasoning for some of the faculty who didn't endorse the referendum.
"BC should certainly retain the right to take scandalous, immoral, and disordered conduct, sexual or not, into account in determining whether to hire, admit, and retain employees and students," wrote Jorge Garcia, a philosophy professor, in an e-mail to The Heights. "For the University to surrender that right would be to abdicate responsibility."
Rev. James M. Weiss, theology professor and director of the Capstone Program, pointed out the balance he finds for this clause within the Catholic ideals.
"It might seem to condone same-sex relations which are contrary to Catholic teaching," Weiss wrote in an e-mail. "That is a weak argument, however. After all, BC provides benefits and equal opportunity for employees who openly violate Catholic morality on other grounds - divorced and remarried persons, for example. The Catholic bishops have actively demanded support, compassion, and understanding of the special situation of people attracted to the same sex. So it is inconsistent with BC's permissiveness on other grounds, and inconsistent with the Catholic bishops' mandate, to omit this phrase from our policy."
Faculty support has reinforced the campaign's momentum. Only a week earlier, 2,100 student signatures were garnered to put the referendum on the ballot.
"We're going to see huge student support," said Salter. "This is not a political issue, and most students understand this. This is not about left and right, it's about building unity."
This is a non-binding referendum, meaning the University does not have to make decision based on the results. Grace Simmons, president of the Undergraduate Government of BC and A&S '05, said proactive stances need to be taken should the referendum pass in favor of amending the clause.
"It's important for us to stay patient and proactive," she said. "It will be important for us to reconnect with the faculty members [that supported us] and ask them for advice, to talk to members of the Jesuit community and see what their thoughts are. We also need to keep students excited."
She encouraged students to vote regardless of their choices for candidates.
"I've talked to a lot of students who don't want to vote for either team, but people still need to vote for the referendum," said Simmons.
The referendum is the first screen of the ballot, followed by the choice for president/vice president, and then a third screen for the senate.
Katy O'Leary, Election Committee co-chair and A&S '06, said she is unsure of whether students can vote on the referendum without voting for UGBC officials.
Spring Break
