BOSTON -- The lesbian mother of an 8-year-old boy said she is used to discrimination but was surprised that her son has been rejected from a Roman Catholic school on the South Shore because of her sexual preference.

The woman, who did not wish to be identified because she's worried about repercussions against her child, said St. Paul's Church in Hingham told her Monday that it was rescinding her son's acceptance into the third grade this fall because her gay relationship was "in discord" with church teachings.

She said she got the news from school Principal Cynthia Duggan and the parish priest, the Rev. James Rafferty, who said the Catholic Church only recognizes marriage between males and females.

The boy's mother, who is not married to her partner, said she didn't think the church would discriminate against her child because of her relationship, especially since the Catholic church accepts many divorced parishioners, and the church also disapproves of divorce.

"I'm accustomed to discrimination, I suppose, at my age and my experience as a gay woman," the mother said. "But I didn't expect it against my child."

She said she and her partner had filled out enrollment forms using both their names and had attended an open house together. They had also picked up uniform orders and paid a deposit before Rafferty told them of the school's decision.

"The Archdiocese does not prohibit children of same sex parents from attending Catholic schools. We will work in the coming weeks to develop a policy to eliminate any misunderstandings in the future," Dr. Mary Grasso O'Neill, the secretary for education and superintendent of Catholic schools, said in a statement.

O'Neill said she has spoken to both school officials and the family about the situation.

"I offered to help enroll her child in another Catholic school in the Archdiocese. She was gracious and appreciative of the suggestion and indicated that she would look forward to considering some other Catholic schools that would welcome her child for the next academic year," she said in a statement.

The decision has generated some controversy among other parishioners.

"The Catholic Church has a mission to help all people of all backgrounds. And to discriminate against a child or anybody, because of sexual orientation, is absolutely wrong," said parent Cynthia Doyle.

Others, however, disagreed.

"To say, as one sole family, 'I want you to change everything overnight,' I think that would be an injustice to the other families and an inconvenience to the school, which isn't prepared for that," said parent Elizabeth Lawless.

A Colorado Catholic school recently denied enrollment to a gay couple's child and in Oregon in 2004 a gay couple sued a Catholic school there for discrimination in a similar case.