Worcester Nativity School May Lose Catholic Status Over Flags

WORCESTER, MA — Worcester's Nativity School is preparing for the possibility that it may lose its affiliation with the Catholic church because the school flies LGBTQ+ and Black Lives Matter flags outside its Lincoln Street building.

Diocese of Worcester leader Bishop Robert McManus recently demanded the school remove the flags, which he said "embody specific agendas or ideologies [that] contradict Catholic social and moral teaching." McManus published two letters demanding the flags be removed in April and May.

In a statement posted on the school website Wednesday, Nativity School President Thomas McKenney said McManus would publish a decree on Thursday in the Catholic Free Press prohibiting the school from identifying as a Catholic institution.

"Nativity will seek to appeal the decision of the Diocese to remove our Catholic identity through the appropriate channels provided by the Church in circumstances like this," McKenney's statement said. "At the same time, after meaningful deliberation and discernment by its board, leadership team, faculty, and partners, Nativity will continue to display the flags in question to give visible witness to the school’s solidarity with our students, families, and their communities.

The Catholic Free Press did not immediately respond to a request either for comment or for an advance copy of McManus' article.

On Wednesday afternoon, the two flags were still flying outside the Nativity School along with the American flag. McKenney said the flags were torn down in March in an act of vandalism. The school began flying the flags in January 2021 at the request of students.

"As a multicultural school, the flags represent the inclusion and respect of all people. These flags simply state that all are welcome at Nativity and this value of inclusion is rooted in Catholic teaching," McKenney said.

The Nativity School opened in 2003, offering a free Catholic school education to boys in grades 5 to 8. The school serves mostly low-income students of color from neighborhoods in central, eastern and northern Worcester.