The Hero
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- Jun 29, 2008
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Cardinal O'Brien said countries which legalise gay marriage are 'shaming themselves'
Claimed same sex unions were the 'thin end of the wedge' and would lead to the 'further degeneration of society into immorality'
Cardinal Keith O'Brien has hit out at plans for gay marriage
Britain's most senior Roman Catholic cleric has likened gay marriage to slavery.
Cardinal
Keith OBrien, leader of the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland has
recently made a series of controversial statements in the media about
same sex unions.
When interviewed on Radio 4, Cardinal
O'Brien said countries which legalise gay marriage are 'shaming
themselves' by going against the 'natural law.'
He
also claimed same sex unions were the 'thin end of the wedge' and would
lead to the 'further degeneration of society into immorality.'
At the weekend Cardinal
O'Brien wrote in newspaper article:
'Imagine
for a moment that the Government had decided to legalise slavery but
assured us that no one will be forced to keep a slave.
'Would
such worthless assurances calm our fury? Would they justify dismantling
a fundamental human right? Or would they simply amount to weasel words
masking a great wrong?' he commented in the Sunday Telegraph.
He has also launched a scathing attack
on David Camerons pledge to legalise homosexual marriage, branding it
madness and grotesque.
Cardinal OBrien,accused the Prime Minister of attempting to redefine marriage for a small minority of activists.
And he insisted that the reforms would shame the United Kingdom in the eyes of the world.'
The
Prime Minister is a strong supporter of plans to legalise same-sex
marriage, which will be formally unveiled later this month.
But the proposal has divided the Conservative Party and put Mr Cameron on a collision course with religious leaders.
Cardinal
OBrien said: Since all the legal rights of marriage are already
available to homosexual couples, it is clear this proposal is not about
rights but rather is an attempt to redefine marriage at the behest of a
small minority of activists.
If
marriage can be redefined so that it no longer means a man and a woman
but two men or two women, why stop there? Why not allow three men, or a
woman and two men, to constitute a marriage, if they pledge their
fidelity to one another?
David Cameron is a supporter of the plans
to legalise gay marriage which will be unveiled by the equalities
minister and Lib Dem MP Lynn Featherstone this month
In 2005, civil partnerships were introduced for gay couples but by law they cannot be referred to as marriages.
Cardinal OBrien is the latest among senior clergy to denounce the Governments backing for marriage to include gay couples.
In
January, the Anglican Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu, insisted
governments did not have the moral authority to redefine marriage, and
in an article for the Daily Mail last month, Lord Carey, the former
Archbishop of Canterbury, wrote: Marriage precedes both the state and
the church, and neither of these institutions have the right to redefine
it in such a fundamental way.
The Rev Sharon Ferguson, a pastor of the
Metropolitan Community Church, and her partner Franka Strietzel, has
fought for same sex marriage
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, wants to stop gay clergymen becoming bishops
If the law is changed, Britain will
become the seventh European country to recognise same-sex marriage,
after the Netherlands, Belgium, Sweden, Spain, Portugal and Norway.
Tory
MP Peter Bone, who has called the plans completely nuts, yesterday
suggested the proposals were hatched following a backroom deal with
the Liberal Democrats.
But
his colleague Margot James, the first openly lesbian Conservative MP,
said: The Government is not trying to force churches to perform gay
marriages. It is a purely civil matter.
Ben
Summerskill, of the gay rights group Stonewall, said: If Roman
Catholics dont approve of same-sex marriage they should make sure they
dont get married to someone of the same sex.
A
Home Office spokesman said the Government believed that a couple should
have the option of a civil marriage irrespective of their sexual
orientation.
Claimed same sex unions were the 'thin end of the wedge' and would lead to the 'further degeneration of society into immorality'
Cardinal Keith O'Brien has hit out at plans for gay marriage
Britain's most senior Roman Catholic cleric has likened gay marriage to slavery.
Cardinal
Keith OBrien, leader of the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland has
recently made a series of controversial statements in the media about
same sex unions.
When interviewed on Radio 4, Cardinal
O'Brien said countries which legalise gay marriage are 'shaming
themselves' by going against the 'natural law.'
He
also claimed same sex unions were the 'thin end of the wedge' and would
lead to the 'further degeneration of society into immorality.'
At the weekend Cardinal
O'Brien wrote in newspaper article:
'Imagine
for a moment that the Government had decided to legalise slavery but
assured us that no one will be forced to keep a slave.
'Would
such worthless assurances calm our fury? Would they justify dismantling
a fundamental human right? Or would they simply amount to weasel words
masking a great wrong?' he commented in the Sunday Telegraph.
He has also launched a scathing attack
on David Camerons pledge to legalise homosexual marriage, branding it
madness and grotesque.
Cardinal OBrien,accused the Prime Minister of attempting to redefine marriage for a small minority of activists.
And he insisted that the reforms would shame the United Kingdom in the eyes of the world.'
The
Prime Minister is a strong supporter of plans to legalise same-sex
marriage, which will be formally unveiled later this month.
But the proposal has divided the Conservative Party and put Mr Cameron on a collision course with religious leaders.
Cardinal
OBrien said: Since all the legal rights of marriage are already
available to homosexual couples, it is clear this proposal is not about
rights but rather is an attempt to redefine marriage at the behest of a
small minority of activists.
If
marriage can be redefined so that it no longer means a man and a woman
but two men or two women, why stop there? Why not allow three men, or a
woman and two men, to constitute a marriage, if they pledge their
fidelity to one another?
David Cameron is a supporter of the plans
to legalise gay marriage which will be unveiled by the equalities
minister and Lib Dem MP Lynn Featherstone this month
In 2005, civil partnerships were introduced for gay couples but by law they cannot be referred to as marriages.
Cardinal OBrien is the latest among senior clergy to denounce the Governments backing for marriage to include gay couples.
In
January, the Anglican Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu, insisted
governments did not have the moral authority to redefine marriage, and
in an article for the Daily Mail last month, Lord Carey, the former
Archbishop of Canterbury, wrote: Marriage precedes both the state and
the church, and neither of these institutions have the right to redefine
it in such a fundamental way.
The Rev Sharon Ferguson, a pastor of the
Metropolitan Community Church, and her partner Franka Strietzel, has
fought for same sex marriage
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, wants to stop gay clergymen becoming bishops
If the law is changed, Britain will
become the seventh European country to recognise same-sex marriage,
after the Netherlands, Belgium, Sweden, Spain, Portugal and Norway.
Tory
MP Peter Bone, who has called the plans completely nuts, yesterday
suggested the proposals were hatched following a backroom deal with
the Liberal Democrats.
But
his colleague Margot James, the first openly lesbian Conservative MP,
said: The Government is not trying to force churches to perform gay
marriages. It is a purely civil matter.
Ben
Summerskill, of the gay rights group Stonewall, said: If Roman
Catholics dont approve of same-sex marriage they should make sure they
dont get married to someone of the same sex.
A
Home Office spokesman said the Government believed that a couple should
have the option of a civil marriage irrespective of their sexual
orientation.