Woman Fired for Using Artificial Insemination

An Ohio woman who was a teacher and the technology coordinator for two Catholic schools in Cincinnati claims she was fired for using artificial insemination to get pregnant.

The schools initially fired Christa Dias for being pregnant while unmarried.  They later changed the dismissal to being pregnant from artificial insemination, which they claim violated Catholic Doctrine, and the contract she signed when she came to work for them.

The contract says "The teacher will “comply with and act consistently in accordance with the stated philosophy and teachings of the Roman Catholic Church and the policies and directives of the School and the Archdiocese.”

Here's what the Catechism of the Roman Catholic Church says on this subject.

“The gift of a child”

“Techniques that entail the dissociation of husband and wife, by the intrusion of a person other than the couple – donation of a sperm or ovum, surrogate uterus – are gravely immoral. These techniques – heterologous artificial insemination and fertilization – infringe the child’s right to be born of a father and mother known to him and bound to each other by marriage. They betray the spouses’ ‘right to become a father and a mother only through each other."

Dias sued the schools for discrimination, but the case has been put on hold while the U.S. Supreme Court considers a similar case.  She is still unemployed.

via Christa Dias, Mother, Fired From Catholic Schools For Use Of Artificial Insemination.

What do you think?  Does a private parochial school have the right to fire employees whose behavior violates the school's religious teachings?

Should parochial schools - or any employer for that matter - be allowed to require "moral" conduct as a condition of employment?

Christa Dias signed a contract in which she agreed to never do anything forbidden by her employer.  Does her lawsuit have a leg to stand on?  Does a signed contract mean anything anymore?