Christian College Reaches Settlement with Teacher Who Refused to Agree with School's Stance on Traditional Marriage

Ballarat Christian College in southeast Australia has reached a settlement with a former teacher and advocate for same-sex marriage.

According to The Christian Post, as part of the settlement, Ballarat will pay an undisclosed amount to Rachel Colvin and give her a positive employment reference.

Colvin filed the lawsuit after she says she was forced to quit her job at the school because she refused to agree to the school’s stance on traditional marriage.

"God designed the two genders, male and female, for the purpose of joy and procreation within the sole relationship of marriage. So a marriage can only be between a male and a female, and upon this foundation alone should children be conceived and families formed," the school’s policy reads.

"I am devastated by what happened to me," she said when she filed the lawsuit.

"I loved my job. I am an extremely hard-worker and loyal to a fault, and to have it end the way it did was, at first, professionally humiliating."

The college’s principal, Ken Nuridin, released a statement following the settlement, saying, “Our College provides high-quality Christian education in accordance with our beliefs. The claim has taken an enormous cost in time and resources already – detracting from the ability of a small school like ours to focus on what is important, the education of our students.”

Colvin, who says she is a Christian, told reporters that she wanted lesbian, gay and other students with different sexual identities to understand they are loved by God.

"I am bringing the case to let my LGBTQI+ students know that they aren't deformed or disordered. They were created as they are, in the image of God, and that they are fully loved by God and share equal dignity with all human beings," she said.

The school also came under criticism in 2015 when the school principal sent an email to parents urging them to oppose marriage equality.

The school was vandalized with graffiti and had to close for a day for cleanup.

Photo courtesy: Pixabay

Amanda Casanova is a writer living in Dallas, Texas. She has covered news for ChristianHeadlines.com since 2014. She has also contributed to The Houston Chronicle, U.S. News and World Report and IBelieve.com. She blogs at The Migraine Runner.