In the news this week: The Government pushes ahead with no-fault divorce plans, LGBT lobby groups come under fire, and abortion giant BPAS objects to conscience rights for pharmacists.
The Archbishop of Canterbury says the Church needs to face up to the sexual revolution and develop a teaching programme for its schools, Justin Welby has asked Stonewall for help — A Court of Appeal ruling has given hope to Christian run Bed and Breakfasts’ which restrict double rooms to married couples — The UK could have assisted suicide clinics like Dignitas in Switzerland, according to the head of leading care home chain, HC-One — Legislation to introduce limited abortion in Ireland has passed the Irish Parliament after two days of heated debate — Public perception of the number of Christians in England and Wales has been hugely underestimated, according to the results of a poll by Ipsos MORI — Children as young as five should have more school books featuring same-sex parents, to encourage inclusivity — And a Christian mum has been telling the touching story of the precious minutes she shared her son, who was born at just 19 weeks.
The Charity Commission has refused to grant charitable status to a Plymouth Brethren group in Devon, because its Holy Communion services are for members only — England’s last remaining Roman Catholic adoption agency has lost its latest legal battle to be able to place children with heterosexual couples only — Dorset Police are to investigate their response, after they were alerted to a threatening text from a man who later murdered a vicar and a retired teacher — First Minister Alex Salmond has criticised Stonewall for naming Scotland’s top Roman Catholic, Cardinal Keith O’Brien as its ‘Bigot of the Year’, – but stopped short of cutting Government funding — A Muslim man who wanted his three children to be brought up in his Islamic faith instead of their mother’s Christian beliefs has failed in his court bid — Bishop Justin Welby has been appointed as the 105th Archbishop of Canterbury — And a former church minister and army chaplin has just celebrated his 110th birthday.
A law professor says the Government’s plans to redefine marriage will cause marriage to ‘eventually unravel altogether’ — The Prime Minister David Cameron has given false information about public opinion on redefining marriage — Girls as young as 13 are being given birth control injections and implants at school during their lunch break – without their parents’ knowledge — The Government has broken a promise to hold a consultation on whether women should get independent counselling about abortion — Two leading banks say they will stop sponsoring gay campaign group, Stonewall, if they continue to intimidate their opponents — And churches across America have been helping the victims of the super-storm that battered the eastern seaboard of the United States.
Barack Obama has said that he personally supports redefining marriage — In North Carolina voters have approved a constitutional amendment which protects the definition of marriage solely as a union between a man and a woman — In the UK, the pro-marriage petition set up by Coalition for Marriage has now passed a landmark half a million signatures — Christian doctors could face a new threat following the publication of a leaflet produced by the General Medical Council and homosexual lobby group Stonewall — The world’s largest coffee shop chain, Starbucks has said that supporting same-sex marriage is ‘core to its values’ — The Revd James Munro is celebrating after walking all 5 of his daughters down the aisle, and then turning round to marry them.
Christian school governors are being urged to carefully check their school’s Relationships and Sex Education (RSE) policies ahead of the first governors’ meetings of the new academic year.
A top human rights lawyer has criticised a Labour MP’s Private Member’s Bill on ‘conversion therapy’ for multiple breaches of human rights.
The Christian Institute has written to the PM over his plans to outlaw so-called ‘conversion therapy’ after more details emerged of problems with similar bans in Australia.
In the latest edition of its magazine The Advocate, The Christian Institute speaks out against the decision of the NatWest bank to sponsor two major gay rights events. The first was Stonewall’s tenth anniversary dinner for 500 at the Savoy, the second is to be Stonewall’s fringe meeting at the forthcoming Labour Party Conference.
The Scottish Government has launched a public consultation, asking whether the law should be changed to allow religious ceremonies for homosexual civil partnerships, and whether the legal definition of marriage should be changed to allow homosexual marriage.
The Westminster Government has announced plans to hold a public consultation, asking whether the legal definition of marriage should be changed to allow homosexual marriage.
You are invited to a NEWS CONFERENCE at the church of St. Andrews Undershaft, St Mary Axe off Leadenhall Street (In the City of London). Nearest underground stations are Liverpool Street, Bank or Monument on Wednesday 1st April 1998 at 10:15am (coffee) or 10:30am, for the launch of a report to be published on Wednesday:
A Brighton care home for elderly Christians has won back thousands of pounds of funding withdrawn by the local council because of its religious beliefs on homosexuality. Pilgrim Homes, the 200-year-old Christian charity that runs the home and nine others, was taking legal action against the council for religious discrimination.
Stirling Free Church (SFC) and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA) have negotiated a successful outcome to their religious discrimination claim against The Robertson Trust (TRT).
As the House of Lords prepares to debate Lord Lester’s Civil Partnerships Bill on Friday 25th January, The Christian Institute publishes a new report, Counterfeit Marriage, which argues against the Bill because:
Pilgrim Homes, a Christian charity that has been caring for older Christians for more than 200 years has lost thousands of pounds of funding because of its religious beliefs on homosexuality. Brighton & Hove City Council wanted the home in Brighton to ask its elderly Christian residents about their sexual orientation every three months. The council also wanted the home to use images of homosexuals in its promotional literature and show a Stonewall presentation on ‘gay rights’ to staff.