A self-described “progressive” K-8 school in Washington, D.C., is figuratively jumping through hoops in efforts to avoid playing basketball at a private Christian school in Northern Virginia that espouses traditional Christian sexual morals.
The Sheridan School is refusing to play division basketball games at Immanuel Christian School, a private, evangelical school in Springfield, Virginia, affiliated with Immanuel Bible Church, because of its policy on LGBT issues. Immanuel Christian School’s views drew wide attention after Karen Pence, wife of Vice President Mike Pence, announced she would be teaching art at the school.
Immanuel Christian School asks applicants to state they agree marriage is “the uniting of one man and one woman in a single, exclusive covenant union as delineated in Scripture and that God intends sexual intimacy to occur only between a man and a woman who are married to each other and that God has commanded that no intimate sexual activity is engaged in outside of marriage between a man and a woman.”
Jessica Donovan, the head of the Sheridan School, reportedly wrote to parents of the school’s students when she learned of the policy at Immanuel, where Sheridan has played in the past.
A copy of the letter was obtained by Rod Dreher, who wrote about it in The American Conservative.
“Given our school’s fundamental beliefs in diversity and inclusion as expressed in our diversity statement, this information, and what to do about it, poses obvious challenges,” Donovan wrote.
According to the letter, Sheridan faculty, staff, and students held a series of discussions about how to proceed with the junior varsity and varsity basketball games.
“The majority said they would like to play while making some kind of statement,” such as having Sheridan students wear “rainbow socks or warm-up jerseys” to send a message.
“Some students did not feel safe entering a school that bans LGBTQ parents, students, or even families that support LGBTQ rights,” Donovan wrote. “Forcing our children to choose between an environment in which they feel unsafe or staying home was not an option.”
“In the end, we know that all of our students will feel safe playing at Sheridan,” Donovan added. “They will wear their rainbow socks in support of LGBTQ rights and they will play their hearts out. Some have made banners that respectfully celebrate LGBTQ rights.”
Ryan Anderson, a senior research fellow in American principles and public policy at The Heritage Foundation, took issue, however, with Sheridan’s seeming double-standard about the two schools’ respective beliefs.
“Immanuel Christian wants to be free to operate according to its deepest values—and that means community standards for staff and students that support orthodox Christianity. This is what the Sheridan School objects to,” Anderson said. “And so, operating according to its deepest values, Sheridan has decided to exclude cooperation and participation with orthodox Christian schools.”
