Church of Scotland Assembly
The main news from the Church of Scotland Assembly in May was the decision to permit congregations to call ministers who are in civil partnerships. The vote carried by 309 to 182, a narrower margin than might have been expected given the number of office-bearers who have already left the Church of Scotland over the matter. There were 74 dissents. With regard to homosexual marriage, it was decided to remit the issue to the Presbyteries under the Barrier Act for further discussion. This carried by 205 votes to 195 with over 300 abstentions.
It was also reported that the minister of Queen’s Cross, Aberdeen, who is openly homosexual and already in a civil partnership, quietly converted his civil partnership into a “marriage” last December, in continued disregard for the present laws of the Church. One does wonder what the difference is between civil partnership and homosexual marriage, given that both are human inventions without biblical foundation. True marriage involves a divine “joining”: “Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder” (Mt 19:6). Homosexual marriage, however, has no such divine element to it and the attempt to grasp the elusive bond between husbands and wives must result in either delusion or disappointment.
The Moderator of the Assembly was Rev Angus Morrison, a former Free Presbyterian and APC minister. Commenting in the Stornoway Gazette after the Assembly, he quoted Professor Iain Torrance to the effect that the debate at the Assembly on homosexuality was not “between those who love Scripture and those who do not, as it is sometimes portrayed”. Whether those who opposed homosexuality loved Scripture, we are not sure – some of them were women ministers and elders, whose own position is condemned by Scripture – but it is certain that those arguing against the scriptural position on sodomy did not “love Scripture”. The issues are not “complex”, as Mr Morrison claims. Sodomy is a great evil, and neither its practitioners nor its proponents should be office-bearers in the Christian Church.
One other thought, which comes from the Puritan John Flavel, is to consider what Muslims and others make of the Church of Scotland decision. Any Muslim dissatisfied with his own religion and seeking something in Christianity is liable to be deterred by this endorsement of uncleanness in the largest Protestant Church in Scotland. This deterrence is part of Satan’s purpose in perverting the Church, and those who play along with his purpose may have more part in the destruction of souls than they realise. DWBS
The Asher Bakery Case
Attacks on religious freedom and expression in the United Kingdom have increased over recent years; the Ashers bakery case is a case in point, ironically brought by the Equalities Commission of Northern Ireland (ECNI) – a Commission which one would expect to uphold equal rights for Christians. After the quango’s complaint, a judge ruled in May that it was unlawful and discriminatory for a Christian bakery to refuse to provide a cake with a slogan distinctly in favour of same-sex marriage.
Ashers Baking Company is a family business started by Colin and Karen McArthur in 1992 which successfully runs several shops in Northern Ireland. They took the name Asher from Genesis 49:20: “Out of Asher his bread shall be fat, and he shall yield royal dainties”, reflecting the company’s Christian ethos.
In May 2014 volunteer activist Mr Gareth Lee came to Ashers’ Belfast shop and ordered a cake to be decorated with the slogan “Support Gay Marriage”, along with the emblem of a campaign group “Queerspace” and two male cartoon puppets embracing each other. The cake was to be presented to the first homosexual to be elected mayor in Northern Ireland, Andrew Muir. The Belfast staff initially accepted the order, but after reflecting with the rest of her family, Mrs McArthur believed they could not conscientiously carry out the contract. Three days later she contacted Mr Lee explaining their position and offering him his money back.
Their son Daniel, who is General Manager of the company, makes it very clear that they accept orders from anyone, but in the past have refused those displaying lewd images or bad language. He confirms that they did not even know that Mr Lee is a homosexual; their issue was with the message, which contradicted their Christian belief that marriage is between a man and a woman. They wished not to be forced into promoting a cause with which they disagreed. It is worth noting that same-sex “marriage” in Northern Ireland is still illegal although the last vote on the issue was very close.
The next month, Mr Lee complained to the ECNI, whose legal department sent a letter threatening the McArthurs with court action for sexual discrimination if the situation was not remedied within seven days. By October 2014 the Commission were alleging that the bakers had also breached political discrimination laws. It could be argued that the taxpayer-funded Equality Commission is itself biased as it apparently states on its website: “The Commission supports the introduction of legislation supporting same-sex marriage” with “safeguards for religious organisations”. We wonder what they really mean by safeguards, when the head of ECNI, Michael Wardlow, is alleged to have said, “Christians who want to run their businesses according to their beliefs should either look to the law or change career”. A spokesperson for the McArthurs said, “It is outrageous to suggest that people who want to live their lives according to their beliefs must change jobs”.
In March this year the case came to court and Judge Isobel Brownlie announced her finding on May 19. She stated that the McArthurs “must have known or had the perception” that Mr Lee was a homosexual and they were therefore guilty of discriminating against him and not just the message. The judgement has dismayed Christians and has been heavily criticised by some sections of the media. Alison Pearson, a journalist with The Daily Telegraph, asserts that Judge Brownlie’s ruling was wrong. She writes, “That is not actually true, is it? Ashers didn’t refuse to sell the cake to Mr Lee because he was gay. They refused to ice a slogan on the cake that attacked their most cherished beliefs.” Then she adds, “A gay activist should think twice before asking a well-known Christian baker to make a cake with a slogan he knows they will find deeply upsetting, let alone bringing a prosecution”.
Melanie McDonagh of The Spectator says the verdict is “simply astonishing” and complains that it is “wrong and intolerant and discriminatory” for the ECNI to act against committed Christians, “persecuting them for holding to their moral principles”. She concludes, “If Gareth Lee had turned baker and was asked by a customer to ice a cake with, ‘Sodomy is sin’, would he have obliged?”
The McArthur family have appeared very gracious throughout this ordeal and for the present are cautiously restricting their range of products. Before the hearing, Daniel said, “Since the Commission does not accept our explanation, we will be in court, because we believe that the Word of God is of far greater importance than the words of the Equality Commission”. After the verdict he warned that this ruling now “suggests that all business owners will have to be willing to promote any cause or campaign, no matter how much they disagree with it”. Karen MacArthur added, “We’ve really depended a lot on God’s Word seeing us through. Isaiah 43 verse 1 was very good and very encouraging.” The verse reads, “But now thus saith the Lord that created thee, O Jacob, and He that formed thee, O Israel, Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art Mine”. Mrs McArthur continues, “He [God] told us not to fear in that verse, and it was one of the verses that we read together on the morning of the trial, and we just held on to that”.
The family are currently appealing against the judgement, but we fear there will be little prospect of redress in the current immoral climate. Whatever homosexuals and earthly judges decide and whatever persecution Christians may have to endure in this world, the solemn reality is that God is the ultimate Judge. “Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?” (Gen 18:25). How good to have Him as our Saviour on that Judgement Day! KHM