Giant Holes in the Sex Code

New and returning students this year were greeted with a fresh, revised copy of the Student Handbook. Among other things, this small, unimposing work is effectively the moral guide by which CUA students are expected to govern their behavior on campus. While we are all affected by regulations governing "Student Participation in Institutional Government" or "Refund Policy", one topic covered in the Handbook that more closely touches the lives of average CUA students is sexual behavior.

I do not deny the right of this University to regulate the behavior of its students in accordance with the laws of God and the United States. Furthermore, students attending The Catholic University of America should not be surprised to encounter a behavioral code that is modeled after Catholic teaching. In particular, the code of sexual ethics imposed upon the resident student body is a paragon of Catholic moral virtue. Despite its lofty aims and origins, the sex code has a large practical problem.

Yes, Virginia, there are gay students at CUA.

The Student Handbook reads, "The Catholic University of America is committed to the teachings and moral values of the Catholic Church, including the belief that 'human sexuality ... is to be genitally expressed only in a monogamous heterosexual relationship of lasting fidelity in marriage.'" Everyone knows that guys and girls cannot be in the same room after 2am. This is meant to prevent sex. Cinderella's coach turns into a pumpkin at midnight, and CUA students fornicate two hours later. Boys and girls caught in the throes of passion by vigilant RA's are punished.

It is easy to spot a guy on an all girls' floor or vice versa, and, with the level of rumor mongering and snitching that occurs on this campus, it is amazing that anyone fornicates at all. The thing that baffles me the most about these policies is the fact that two people of the same gender can effectively live together and have a more than platonic relationship without visibly breaking the rules. Imagine, one can cohabitate with a significant other, or, to use my grandmother's terminology, "live in sin", without having to deal with the hassle of living off campus. All one needs to do is, first, be gay and then fill out the appropriate paper work. Furthermore, unless one has an RA that is exceptionally driven or socially inept, it is nearly impossible to get caught breaking sex policy.

This is obviously an inequitable situation. I am not trying to begrudge a fellow student of what I am sure is a valuable loophole for him or her. I do not presume to dictate the private behavior of my fellow students in so far as it does not bring harm to others or myself. However, such inequity in the way rules are written and enforced has no place at an institution that prides itself on promoting justice, equality, and morality.

I firmly believe that the sex code at this university needs to be revisited with this glaring contradiction in mind. I am not suggesting a "witch hunt" where same sex roommates are spied upon or suspected of having a sexual relationship. I do not have a concrete solution to this problem. I did not write the sex code, and I am not responsible to correct it. However, as a concerned CUA student who has subjected myself to a lifetime of debt in order to attend this fine institution, I feel that it is necessary to point out such obvious problems.

Can I get an amen?