Homosexuality

What British Muslims Really Think, or what Christians need to rethink?

Channel 4's documentary What British Muslims Really Think informed us that 52% of them want homosexuality to be outlawed; 39% believe that a woman should always obey her husband; 18% sympathise with those who resort to violence against those…

Anglican Primates pronounce, but the Holy Spirit prevails

January 16, 2016
739 Comments

The media bulletins are full of 'Episcopal Church suspended from the Anglican Communion', with a list of prohibitions and fulminations about 'second class Anglicans', with Giles Fraser reminding us…

Rev'd Barry Trayhorn "forced to resign" as prison worker – for quoting the Bible in chapel

November 2, 2015
462 Comments

HMP Littlehey is a 'Category C' men's prison ("Those who cannot be trusted in open conditions but who are unlikely to try to escape") and Young Offender Institute near…

'Prevent Duty' teacher: "If you say homosexuality is wrong, you might be breaking the law"

September 24, 2015
293 Comments

Last Friday (18th September) the BBC Radio 4 Today programme discussed the Government's 'Prevent' strategy, which places a statutory obligation upon all schools and children's services to incorporate into…

Welby breathes new life into the crumbling Anglican Communion

September 16, 2015
34 Comments

Anglicanism: the final frontier. These are the prophetic voyages of Justin Welby. His continuing mission: to explore strange new reconciliations; to seek out new wine and new creations; to…

Anti-terror legislation will be used against teachers who oppose same-sex marriage

August 4, 2015
340 Comments

The Extremism Bill seeks to extend the powers of government and law enforcement agencies to confront and neuter what they perceive to constitute 'extremism'. One of its provisions is…

Cameron can no more "destroy the Caliphate" than he can abolish the New Jerusalem

July 21, 2015
190 Comments

David Cameron's long-awaited speech on Islamic extremism (aka Islamism) was sort of worth waiting for. As he expounded his 'One Nation' vision to defeat the "poison" of extremism, he…

Tim Farron's Christian faith becomes an object of media scorn

July 19, 2015
334 Comments

There are plenty of people who think that you shouldn’t mix faith and politics. For some, such as the National Secular Society, they have made it a mission to…

To preach Leviticus 20:13 now constitutes a public order offence

March 25, 2015
499 Comments

There is much to be mocked about street preachers. The world has become intolerant of compact megaphones in the market place, boorishly denouncing sin and declaring the coming judgment…

Homophobia, Islamophobia and the triumph of ideological 'Truth'

March 22, 2015
258 Comments

Christianophobia has never really caught on. Perhaps it is a clumsy etymological construction: three syllables before '-ophobia' is at least one phonetic unit too many, and it isn't at…

If we can 'pardon' past convictions for gross indecency, why not heresy?

March 5, 2015
870 Comments

The Royal Pardon is usually reserved for those who, having once been convicted of a criminal act, are subsequently discovered to have been innocent of the offence and so…

Announcing @HolyVote – it's time to reclaim our religious liberty

March 3, 2015
234 Comments

Apparently, the 2010 General election was the first internet election. And if not that one, it is this one. And if not this one, then it is still to…

If babies may be aborted on the grounds of their sex, why not sexuality?

February 23, 2015
204 Comments

"Thank heaven for little girls," sang Maurice Chevalier in the 1958 film Gigi. The reason? Well, mainly because they i) "get bigger every day"; and ii) "grow up in…

Since when has knowing what lesbians do been a British value?

January 22, 2015
189 Comments

The task of education is to impart knowledge - especially of that which might develop literacy and numeracy, for without proficiency in words and numbers one may be muted…

Steve Chalke, sexuality and the redemption of the Church

November 10, 2014
522 Comments

Over the last four decades of being a Christian there have been a handful of individuals who have significantly influenced and shaped my faith. My parents come out top…

Pope Francis moves Rome toward reason and experience

October 19, 2014
362 Comments

As the headlines of "failure", "setback", "disappointment" and "dismay" spread throughout those parts of world which view just about everything the Church does as a failure or setback, or…

While thousand are persecuted and martyred, the Church ponders sexuality

October 15, 2014
70 Comments

Apparently, ISIS/ISIL/Islamic State has declared war on Christians. The latest cover of their propaganda magazine Dabiq shows the black jihadi flag flying above St Peter's in Rome. It is…

Christians are called to be 'non-violent extremists'

October 8, 2014
160 Comments

We have been here before. In fact, the illiberal proposal raises its portentous head with such frequency that it feels almost teleologically predetermined. From Labour's assault on "hate speech"…

The political purpose of claiming 10% of bishops are gay

September 29, 2014
362 Comments

This is a guest post by the Rev'd Peter Ould - a Church of England priest, consultant statistician and former blogger with an interest in the topic of human sexuality…