Matt Bush, FISM News
A teacher in Ireland refused to use a “transitioning” student’s preferred pronouns because it went against his Christian beliefs, so he was suspended from his job and then arrested for not complying with the suspension.
Secondary school teacher Enoch Burke has been sent to prison for breaching a High Court order preventing him from attending or attempting to teach at the secondary school where he is employed | https://t.co/1jF5ApDqtl pic.twitter.com/JEyoajY2Ew
— RTÉ News (@rtenews) September 5, 2022
Enoch Burke is a secondary school teacher at Wilson’s Hospital School and also a professing evangelical Christian. He would not use a student’s preferred pronouns because of his faith, so the school put him on administrative leave and a court barred him from teaching or being on campus at the school.
“I love my school, with its motto Res Non Verba, ‘Actions not words,’ but I am here today because I said I would not call a boy a girl,” Burke told the court. According to CBS News, Burke, who teaches German, history, politics, and debate, refused to use the pronoun “they” when describing a male student who was in the process of “transitioning.”
“Transgenderism is against my Christian belief. It is contrary to the scriptures, contrary to the ethos of the Church of Ireland and of my school,” Burke said.
The school board met to discuss the situation and on August 22, almost four months after Burke refused to use the pronouns, he was placed on temporary paid administrative leave.
Ireland’s RTE News reported that the school’s administration was abundantly clear that Burke was not being punished. He was being asked to step away from his position while the disciplinary board worked things out and decided whether or not punishment was necessary.
Burke, however, did not agree. RTE News reported that, “Burke said suspension was a serious sanction which tarnished his unblemished record in the school and local community. He said the chairman of the board of management had refused to answer when asked if there was an allegation of gross misconduct against him.”
After being placed on administrative leave, Burke just kept showing up to class. In fact, he was arrested, not for the pronouns he was using, but for ignoring the court order barring him from teaching at the school.
“I am a teacher and I don’t want to go to prison. I want to be in my classroom today, that’s where I was this morning when I was arrested,” Burke told the court on the day he was taken into custody.
It is important to note that Burke was not arrested and taken to prison because he would not use the pronoun “they” to describe a male student at the school. He was arrested because he believed that his Christian beliefs should guide him as a teacher, and it was important for him to stand behind those beliefs so he refused to accept a suspension that contradicted his belief in God.
Enoch Burke could have used the student’s preferred pronouns and he would not be in prison today. He also could have taken the paid administrative leave and stayed at home while still bringing home his regular paycheck as most people would.
Burke, however, saw a chance to stand up for his beliefs at the expense of his reputation, his freedom, and his career, and he chose to take a stand.