On March 12, 2009, Ruth Kolpack was fired from her position as Pastoral Associate at St. Thomas the Apostle Catholic Church in Beloit, Wisconsin. She had served the parish for the past 35 years.
The decision to fire Ruth, effective immediately, came after a ten minute meeting with Bishop Robert Morlino of the Catholic Diocese of Madison.
During this meeting, Ruth was asked to denounce her master's thesis, titled, "Inclusive Language for Naming God: A Challenge for the Church," in order to keep her job; she was given no opportunity to defend her work, nor explain why it would be dishonest for her to conform to the Bishop's request.
We sincerely believe that the decision to fire Ruth was made without a full disclosure of Ruth's faithful service to the Church.
We respectfully ask the Bishop to reconsider the discharge of Ruth.
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