David Hood, the former principal of Christ the King K-8 private Catholic school, was quickly put on administrative leave and then dismissed altogether after a story broke this fall regarding his intention to have students pray in front of an abortion clinic for school credit.

Hood is now finally speaking out about the firing, blaming it mostly on the newspaper for “distorting” his comments to make people believe that he would provide credit for abortion protesting.

Via the Winnipeg Free Press:

Speaking out for the first time, Hood said in a lengthy letter to the editor of the Free Press he was fired because the newspaper chose “to propagate lies” and because the Catholic authorities used him as a scapegoat to deflect unwanted public attention.

Throughout, he has lived by deeply held Catholic beliefs that the school and its parish embrace, Hood said.

An interview published Oct. 12 drew national attention and is the most-commented-upon story ever posted on the Free Press website.

Hood said in an Oct. 11 interview he was encouraging parents to take part in anti-abortion prayer vigils outside Health Sciences Centre. He hoped to make the vigils an official school activity for both parents and students of the St. Vital kindergarten-to-Grade 8 private school as early as next September. And, Hood said, if any student took part in the vigils this school year, that could count toward their required community service.

Hood has accused the Free Press of manipulating and distorting comments he’d “allegedly” made, and of leading readers to believe he would grant academic credit to students participating in anti-abortion prayer vigils.

Wait. He said in the interview that he wanted to grant students community service credit for praying outside a clinic. Then he accused the paper of reporting that he wanted to grant students community service credit for praying outside a clinic.

Propagating lies doesn’t mean what he thinks it does, does it?