And you thought churches would be safe – hah! You simply fell for the lies of the militants. They keep claiming nothing will change with homosexual marriage, and churches can go on with business as usual. Of course they are lying through their teeth. They know full well that their aim is to shut down entirely all opposition – and the churches are first on their hit list.
All over the West the push for homosexual marriage is often being accompanied by sham talk of exceptions and exemptions for religious folks and institutions. Don’t believe a word of it. These are merely tactics to deceive gullible religious folk into thinking these law changes won’t be so bad.
And of course once the laws go through, then the exemptions will be taken away. We have a classic case of this just being revealed in today’s press. The very person who ought to know in the UK – a justice minister – has told Prime Minister Cameron that there is no way he can guarantee any exemptions won’t be stripped away. What an incredible admission.
Here is how one news article puts it: “David Cameron’s promise to protect churches from gay marriage laws could hit legal hurdles, a justice minister admitted yesterday. Crispin Blunt said it would be hard to guarantee that clergy would not face court challenges if they refused to preside over same-sex unions. ‘We’re seeking to protect, indeed, proscribe religious organisations from offering gay marriage,’ said Mr Blunt, who announced two years ago that he is gay.
“Crispin Blunt said it would be difficult to guarantee that clergy would not face court challenges if they refused to preside over gay marriages ‘That may be problematic legally, but the proposal the Government are putting forward is that marriage should be equal in the eyes of the state whether it’s between a same-sex couple or between a man and a woman. We’ll have to see what happens with that.’
“Mr Blunt’s comments appear to undermine reassurances from both Downing Street and Home Secretary Theresa May yesterday that churches will not be affected by the law. The remarks will be seized on by critics who insist that legalising gay marriage will eventually force bishops to accept same-sex marriages.
“Government ministers yesterday insisted the controversial change would go ahead by 2015, despite a ferocious backlash that saw the Roman Catholic Church join the Church of England in condemning the move. Catholic leaders told ministers that they do not believe Coalition guarantees of protection.
“David Cameron is likely to face a tricky balancing act in the ongoing debate over gay marriage. The European Court of Human Rights is likely to overturn the promised safeguards meant to assure churches they will never have to conduct gay weddings, they said. The statements came in a fiercely-worded response to the consultation on same-sex marriage that is due to end tomorrow.
“The Church of England has already said the safeguards will not hold under the scrutiny of the European court and that the 500-year-old ties between the Anglicans and the state are under threat. It warned it was very doubtful whether limiting same-sex couples to non-religious ceremonies would withstand a challenge at the court.”
Some better news
With all these assaults on faith and freedom, finally Christians there have started to wake up and take action: “The Catholic Church in England and Wales is further asking believers to sign a petition on the Coalition for Marriage website, which has so far gathered over 500,000 signatures opposing the government’s plans to change the definition of marriage.”
And in the meantime, plenty of homosexuals are coming out of the closet saying they do not favour homosexual marriage! Of course we have always known that most homosexuals don’t want it, but now some of the more honest ones are coming out loud and clear on this. Consider this amazing confession of one homosexual activist:
“Well, Mr Cameron, I am a Conservative and a homosexual, and I oppose gay marriage. Am I a bigot? And what about Alan Duncan, the first Conservative MP to come out as gay? Mr Duncan, the International Aid Minister who is in a civil partnership, is implacably opposed to gay marriage. So is Dr David Starkey, the celebrated historian, who is openly gay.
“The Labour MP Ben Bradshaw, meanwhile, who was the first Cabinet minister to enter into a civil partnership, is contemptuous of Mr Cameron’s motive for smashing down centuries of traditional Church teaching in reference to marriage. ‘This isn’t a priority for the gay community, which has already won equal rights with civil partnerships,’ says Bradshaw. ‘This is pure politics.’
“He’s right. It’s yet another sop to the wretched Lib Dems, even though they number only 57 of the 650 MPs at Westminster. The introduction of same-sex marriage became a policy commitment at the Lib Dem conference two years ago, even though there was no reference to it in their election manifesto, or in their four-page manifesto written for the gay community only six months earlier.
“At the time, the former Lib Dem MP Dr Evan Harris hailed the policy as ‘creating clear blue water with the Tories’. Few Conservatives took the idea seriously — until Mr Cameron’s bombshell announcement at the last Tory conference that he backed it, too.
“In spite of the furore caused by the Church of England’s intervention this week, Downing Street is insisting that Mr Cameron, who has so far performed 34 policy U-turns in power, has no intention of backing down on this issue. Even gay rights campaigners are puzzled by the Prime Minister’s conversion to the cause. Stonewall, a powerful pressure group for gay equality, has not called for gay marriage.”
So if all these activists are saying they don’t want homosexual marriage, then why in the world is the leader of the conservative party pushing it? This is madness in the extreme. If he goes ahead with this move, it will entirely fracture the nation.
Is that what he wants? Thanks a lot Cameron – just what they need. Such is the poisonous role of radical ideology – and behind it all the doctrines of demons. At the end of the day this is a spiritual assault on church and nation, with the ultimate aim of destroying both.
With friends like Cameron, watch out for the enemies.
Thanks for another perceptive and accurate comment on the situation here in the UK. Indeed there is a momentous battle going on.
“The European Court of Human Rights is likely to overturn the promised safeguards meant to assure churches they will never have to conduct gay weddings, they said.”
Actually, I’m sure you and other posters on this blog will agree that any biblically rooted Church(s) CANNOT agree to SSM in their premises, notwithstanding the jurisdiction of the ECHR, or indeed any other court.
So there may well be an open breach between Church and State looming.
As ‘Cranmer’ on his blog put the question – “Will Cameron force HMQ to break her Coronation Oath”?
Apart from a few liberal churches, unitarian, United Reformed and a few Jewish groups, the churches are totally united in opposition on this one.
As I mentioned I think in a previous post, the issue has everything to do with the headship of Jesus Christ within his own church. Does He alone rule the doctrine, and practice of his churches as expressed in Scripture, or are they to submit to the massed opposition of godless secular authorities? That is the choice if these attempt to impose SSM via the courts.
Is the Genesis account of the creation of male/female in creation, and quoted by Christ in Mark 10, authoritative and the final word for the church or is it not?
Does Christ define marriage, or must He be subject to the revisionism which arrogantly presumes to “re-define” it?
In the view of many, Cameron, (or rather his Lib Dem tail wagging the dog) has gone too far.
He may well find therefore that this move is politically counter productive, and quietly drop it in yet another U turn.
Graham Wood, UK
UNITED KINGDOM, June 12, 2012 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Despite homosexual activists’ efforts to frame same-sex “marriage” as a pressing “gay rights” cause, a new poll finds that redefining marriage is a low priority for many homosexuals in the United Kingdom.
The poll, conducted by the UK-based polling firm ComRes at the request of Catholic Voices, found that just half of gays and lesbians in the UK consider it important to extend marriage to same-sex couples, while only 27% say they would marry their partner if they could.
A quarter of respondents said there was no need to introduce gay “marriage,” because civil unions already provided all the same rights and privileges as marriage.
The survey also had some bad news for Conservative Prime Minister David Cameron, with almost half of respondents agreeing that they believe he is only promoting gay “marriage” “to make his party look more compassionate rather than because of his convictions.”
ComRes notes that homosexuals make up just 1.5% of the UK’s population – the numbers are similar in the U.S. – although the ComRes poll resulted in a higher number, which they speculate is due to the sampling bias involved in respondents to online surveys.
The results of the survey were welcomed by Colin Hart, director of the Coalition for Marriage campaign, who said, “This poll confirms yet again that only a handful of people are pushing the Government to redefine marriage.
“Even amongst those within the gay community, there is no majority who thinks that this is a priority.”
Legalising gay marriage will queer everyone’s pitch. Throwing caution to the wind, our arrogant Coalition Conservative Prime Minister, while appeasing his Liberal deputy and hench women in the Equalities Dept., has not thought through the wider and deeper implications of redefining marriage. It is evident he is blocking his ears to any counter considerations to this weighty matter. He thinks it is a small matter which will have limited impact on non-gay people and hopes it will de-toxify the Conservative brand. He has discounted the overriding power of the European Court of Human Rights, possibly for a strategy of his own. What is really preposterous is that this matter is being driven through by the Coalition Govt but there was no mention of it in either of their manifestos. Three cheers for Andrew Pierce, whose article has been partly reproduced above. Perhaps Cameron will listen to him.
Rachel Smith, UK
Gay people are actually better off financially remaining single because if one is on, say, an age pension, and the other is earning a good salary, if they are married the pension will be wiped out. If they remain as 2 people sharing a house, they can keep the benefits.
Rodney Gynther
As we had in the 3 eastern state elections over the last 18 months, people voted LNP because they wanted something different and are disappointed because they got pretty much the same in different garb. Conservatives are fallen over like dominoes. I guess we are finding out who had their life built on the rock.
But as I said before, our enemy knows its enemy and when sections of the church fall over without fight, I am sure they are surprised, pleasantly surprised no doubt, but surprised just the same. I pray we will wake up to who our real enemy is, a spiritual enemy, strongholds, arguments and pretenses, I think Paul calls it. We need to take back the ability to attack wrong ideas and world views without attacking people and if they still feel attacked, well, so be it.
You do it well, Bill, bless you
Many blessings
Ursula Bennett
Thanks Ursula
Yes we all need to get involved here, and it certainly is ultimately a spiritual battle.
Bill Muehlenberg, CultureWatch
Wasn’t there supposed to be a separation between church and state? If this goes through how long will it be before they tell us what we can preach?
However can someone look at the different costings between two homosexuals living together in a civil partnership and those in a marriage state. There may just be a Cameron carrot in their somewhere.
Thanks for another perceptive and accurate comment on the situation here in the UK. Indeed there is a momentous battle going on.
“The European Court of Human Rights is likely to overturn the promised safeguards meant to assure churches they will never have to conduct gay weddings, they said.”
Actually, I’m sure you and other posters on this blog will agree that any biblically rooted Church(s) CANNOT agree to SSM in their premises, notwithstanding the jurisdiction of the ECHR, or indeed any other court.
So there may well be an open breach between Church and State looming.
As ‘Cranmer’ on his blog put the question – “Will Cameron force HMQ to break her Coronation Oath”?
Apart from a few liberal churches, unitarian, United Reformed and a few Jewish groups, the churches are totally united in opposition on this one.
As I mentioned I think in a previous post, the issue has everything to do with the headship of Jesus Christ within his own church. Does He alone rule the doctrine, and practice of his churches as expressed in Scripture, or are they to submit to the massed opposition of godless secular authorities? That is the choice if these attempt to impose SSM via the courts.
Is the Genesis account of the creation of male/female in creation, and quoted by Christ in Mark 10, authoritative and the final word for the church or is it not?
Does Christ define marriage, or must He be subject to the revisionism which arrogantly presumes to “re-define” it?
In the view of many, Cameron, (or rather his Lib Dem tail wagging the dog) has gone too far.
He may well find therefore that this move is politically counter productive, and quietly drop it in yet another U turn.
Graham Wood, UK
UNITED KINGDOM, June 12, 2012 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Despite homosexual activists’ efforts to frame same-sex “marriage” as a pressing “gay rights” cause, a new poll finds that redefining marriage is a low priority for many homosexuals in the United Kingdom.
The poll, conducted by the UK-based polling firm ComRes at the request of Catholic Voices, found that just half of gays and lesbians in the UK consider it important to extend marriage to same-sex couples, while only 27% say they would marry their partner if they could.
A quarter of respondents said there was no need to introduce gay “marriage,” because civil unions already provided all the same rights and privileges as marriage.
The survey also had some bad news for Conservative Prime Minister David Cameron, with almost half of respondents agreeing that they believe he is only promoting gay “marriage” “to make his party look more compassionate rather than because of his convictions.”
ComRes notes that homosexuals make up just 1.5% of the UK’s population – the numbers are similar in the U.S. – although the ComRes poll resulted in a higher number, which they speculate is due to the sampling bias involved in respondents to online surveys.
The results of the survey were welcomed by Colin Hart, director of the Coalition for Marriage campaign, who said, “This poll confirms yet again that only a handful of people are pushing the Government to redefine marriage.
“Even amongst those within the gay community, there is no majority who thinks that this is a priority.”
http://www.lifesitenews.com/news/uk-homosexuals-largely-uninterested-in-gay-marriage-poll
Damien Spillane
Legalising gay marriage will queer everyone’s pitch. Throwing caution to the wind, our arrogant Coalition Conservative Prime Minister, while appeasing his Liberal deputy and hench women in the Equalities Dept., has not thought through the wider and deeper implications of redefining marriage. It is evident he is blocking his ears to any counter considerations to this weighty matter. He thinks it is a small matter which will have limited impact on non-gay people and hopes it will de-toxify the Conservative brand. He has discounted the overriding power of the European Court of Human Rights, possibly for a strategy of his own. What is really preposterous is that this matter is being driven through by the Coalition Govt but there was no mention of it in either of their manifestos. Three cheers for Andrew Pierce, whose article has been partly reproduced above. Perhaps Cameron will listen to him.
Rachel Smith, UK
Gay people are actually better off financially remaining single because if one is on, say, an age pension, and the other is earning a good salary, if they are married the pension will be wiped out. If they remain as 2 people sharing a house, they can keep the benefits.
Rodney Gynther
As we had in the 3 eastern state elections over the last 18 months, people voted LNP because they wanted something different and are disappointed because they got pretty much the same in different garb. Conservatives are fallen over like dominoes. I guess we are finding out who had their life built on the rock.
But as I said before, our enemy knows its enemy and when sections of the church fall over without fight, I am sure they are surprised, pleasantly surprised no doubt, but surprised just the same. I pray we will wake up to who our real enemy is, a spiritual enemy, strongholds, arguments and pretenses, I think Paul calls it. We need to take back the ability to attack wrong ideas and world views without attacking people and if they still feel attacked, well, so be it.
You do it well, Bill, bless you
Many blessings
Ursula Bennett
Thanks Ursula
Yes we all need to get involved here, and it certainly is ultimately a spiritual battle.
Bill Muehlenberg, CultureWatch
Wasn’t there supposed to be a separation between church and state? If this goes through how long will it be before they tell us what we can preach?
However can someone look at the different costings between two homosexuals living together in a civil partnership and those in a marriage state. There may just be a Cameron carrot in their somewhere.
Dennis Newland