Liam Fox MP (Photo by Thomas Solberg)
Dr Liam Fox MP (Photo by Thomas Solberg)

A former minister has attacked the Governments’ gay marriage proposals as ‘divisive, ill thought through and constitutionally wrong’ in a letter to constituents.

Liam Fox MP said the proposed legislation would appease only a ‘a very small, if vocal, minority’ and risked alienating Christians, whom he described as ‘a large stabilising and normally acquiescent section of this country’.

Mr Fox singled out the so-called ‘quadruple lock’ under which the Church of England and the Church in Wales will be specifically prohibited from conducting gay marriages.

The ‘Quadruple Lock’ would:

1 Ensure the legislation states explicitly that no religious organisation, or individual minister, can be compelled to marry same-sex couples or to permit this to happen on their premises;
2 Provide an ‘opt-in’ system for religious organisations who wish to conduct marriages for same-sex couples;
3 Amend the Equality Act 2010 to reflect that no discrimination claims can be brought against religious organisations or individual ministers for refusing to marry a same-sex couple or allowing their premises to be used for this purpose; and
4 Ensure that the legislation will not affect the Canon law of the Churches of England or the Church in Wales who will thereby not be allowed to ‘opt in’ under point 2.

But Mr Fox said: ‘Banning the Church of England from what would be an otherwise legal activity is anomalous and absurd. If the “exemption” is, as stated, because the Church had made clear their objection to same-sex marriage then why not exempt the Catholic church, which has been even clearer in its opposition?

‘The idea of making certain practices illegal for one Christian church, but not others, risks further weakening and splintering Britain’s traditional religion at a time when many Christians feel that they are under threat on a number of secular, political and cultural fronts.’

This legal anomaly, he said, could allow the European court of human rights to ‘drive a coach and horses through the legislation’.

Christian Voice has urged other denominations to press the Government to be included in the ‘Quadruple Lock’, not that we believe it will make any difference to the European Court when it considers the matter, as it undoubtedly will.

In its response to the consultation, the Government said homosexual couples would not need to consummate their ‘marriages’, tacitly acknowledging that they lack the full set of equipment to do so.  Nor would a homosexual be able to commit adultery within a ‘gay marriage’, unless it was in the normal way with a person of the opposite sex.  No ‘lesser act of sexual gratification’, which covers homosexual practice, can in law amount to adultery.

The Government also propose to amend marriage vows so that homosexual couples are ‘referred to as ‘husband’ and ‘husband’, or ‘wife’ and ‘wife’ for legal purposes.’  Where that leaves ‘butch and femme’ homosexual relationships, where one party adopts a male role and the other a female, has not been addressed.

 

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10 COMMENTS

  1. What are the party I voted for thinking of?

    From a secular point of view, is this putting more bread on people’s tables?

    Is this going to enrich our nation in some way, make us all feel a greater bond for one another?

    Is it even going to earn votes for the Conservative party? No, No, No –

    So, whatever is the motivation behind such a ridiculous proposal to redefine marriage?
    Have politicians got a mental disease which like some insects David Attenborough has demonstrated, causes them to commit suicide for the benefit of the infecting virus!

  2. Let us use the word of God,God calls them Sodomites and the Power is in His Word. Lets stop packaging Sin which make it looks acceptable and not Sin in the word gay or homosexual, thay are Sodomites.Sin is Sin which ever way you package it.

  3. I agree that we need to start addressing the actions of these people as sodomites. We need to stop using the word gay and perhaps just use the word homosexuals.

    I need to know as I am getting confused now how do we go about protesting the ‘redifining of marriage’. As although the goverment has ‘permitted the church’ to opt in to this evil.

    Who is speaking up for God as saying ‘no goverment or man, woman or child has any authority to change or amend the covenant of marriage.

    I heard that on one of the islands in the Caribbean some crazy persons was asking the government to allow gay marriage. (Homosexuality is frowned upon in the Caribbean). And the government said no because if he agreed to it the judgment of God would hit the island!

  4. This sort of evil discussion is also infecting “ozzie” political discussion and some states have already legalised so called same sex marriages.When are our representative pollies going to get the message that this phenomena is a direct attack on our Christian civilization?The big plan is to create discussion from all points so that the citizens do not know which way up we are supposed to be.The people must “get it” and make their representatives obey their wishes, or face the fact that the only way to rebuild a just civil system is for much blood to be spilt.May God encourage them to take the stand.

  5. He cant exempt the Catholic Church under the Act of Settlement s 1 & 2 which the Queen has already broken by the way. a Protestant monarch MUST NOT be reconciled with the Catholic church or the Pope or all things papal!

  6. What i laugh at is the Amendment so that no one can bring in a discrimination claim, we saw that clause in the old RaceRelationsAct 2000 and its there also in the Equality Act- so much for justice and Equality huh??/

  7. Sodomite is so right – the biblical word for these people. And let’s not hear any nonsense about ‘hating the sin but loving the sinner’ because this is unscriptural. God hates the sinner – Jesus talks about ‘you who are evil’, not ‘you who do evil but are quite nice really’. Even Christian Voice is a little soft in this respect.
    So come on Stephen, call a spade a spade (and a sinner a sinner) and proclaim the gospel boldly: when God redeems people from sin, he doesn’t just ignore their sin or cut it away as if it were a malignant growth. He makes the sinner completely anew to be sinless, spotless and righteous through Christ’s redemptive act. That’s what these sinful sodomites need to learn, and they should be hearing it from you and from all of us as Christians.

  8. Tens of thousands of Christians (mostly Catholics) have been out on the streets of Paris protesting against same sex ‘marriage’ for a second time. These protests have been totally ignored by the British media. It is time that we did the same thing in this country.