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Tilted Cat Head
Administrator
Location: Manhattan, NY
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Athiest Donates to Catholic Schools
Quote:
Alms wide open
Self-avowed atheist ponies up $22.5M to help out Catholic schools
BY JENS DANA and DAVE GOLDINER
DAILY NEWS WRITERS
Posted Thursday, May 24th 2007, 4:00 AM
The wealthy philanthropist who gave $22.5 million to help Catholic schools doesn't think much of theology - in fact, he's an atheist.
But even though Robert Wilson doesn't believe in God, he does believe in giving poor kids a chance at a quality education.
"I am an atheist, [but] it's far more than about religion," said Robert Wilson, who was raised as an Episcopalian. "It's about getting an education. The donation has nothing to do with religion."
The statement didn't exactly sit well with Edward Cardinal Egan, who joked that Wilson might need a bit of an education himself about what goes on in Catholic schools.
"Mr. Wilson and I are going to [be] spending a lot of time together," Egan quipped.
The donation - the biggest in Archdiocese of New York history - will help 3,000 kids from poor families pay for Catholic schools in New York City during the next five years.
Wilson, 80, suggested he would have considered supporting public education, but wanted to sink his money into what he considers a higher-quality school system.
The former Wall Street investor, who is listed among BusinessWeek's "50 Most Generous Philanthropists," blamed the teachers union for crippling public schools with what he termed selfish and greedy demands.
"They oppose any effort to help private schools," said Wilson, who usually shuns the limelight. "They've opposed any kind of help to the Roman Catholic system."
Wilson's broadside drew howls from the United Federation of Teachers, which charged the gift was "tainted" because he dissed city teachers. "They should be celebrated, not excoriated," said UFT boss Randi Weingarten.
Wilson decided to give so generously after hearing that many seats in Catholic schools go unfilled because parents of deserving kids can't afford the cost.
Another Wall Street titan, who asked to remain anonymous, chipped in $4.5 million after hearing of Wilson's donation.
The two gifts put the Cardinal's Scholarship Program at $97million toward a $158 million goal of providing scholarships toneedy elementary school children.
Most parents of Catholic schoolkids were surprised that an atheist wanted to help church schools, but they were thankful for the un-Godly giver.
"He must believe in something," said Freddy Pilar, 44, of Queens.
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Should it make a difference? Does donating monies to a cause require full acceptance of it's belief system? Would it be just as good to donate to GMHC when one doesn't care for homosexuality but wants to help people who are ill?
I don't think it matters. A donation is a donation so long as there are no strings to that donation. Even if the Catholic Church decided to not accept it as I would image the GMHC scenario, I don't see any reason except to spite themselves.
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I don't care if you are black, white, purple, green, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, hippie, cop, bum, admin, user, English, Irish, French, Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Buddhist, Muslim, indian, cowboy, tall, short, fat, skinny, emo, punk, mod, rocker, straight, gay, lesbian, jock, nerd, geek, Democrat, Republican, Libertarian, Independent, driver, pedestrian, or bicyclist, either you're an asshole or you're not.
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