Desmond Tutu's daughter to give up ministry after gay marriage - premier

Desmond Tutu's daughter to give up ministry after gay marriage - premier: Archbishop Desmond Tutu's daughter is to give up ministry after entering a gay marriage.

Archbishop Desmond Tutu's daughter is to give up ministry after entering a gay marriage.

Revd Canon Mpho Tutu-Van Firth said she was forced to leave her role in the Anglican Church
because it does not recognise same sex marriages.

Clergy are forbidden from entering a gay marriage and she would have likely been stripped
of her licence to practice had she not stood down herself.

It was a "dignified" exit from the Church, she said.

"Because the South African Anglican Church does not recognise our marriage, I can no
longer exercise my priestly ministry in South Africa.

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Inside the Little Church in the Jungle: BBC films Songs of Praise at touching chapel Ethiopian migrants have made in Calais camp , Daily Mail

• BBC filming Songs of Praise from a migrant camp in Calais
• Producers have started shooting at Ethiopian Orthodox Church in camp
• Full crew is expected to arrive at the 'Jungle' camp over the weekend 
• MPs and viewers have blasted the decision to film during ongoing crisis

The BBC’s flagship religious show Songs of Praise is being filmed at a touching chapel within a migrants’ camp in Calais, it has emerged.

Producers have already spent two days shooting an episode at a makeshift Ethiopian Orthodox Church in the 'Jungle' camp, which will be broadcast on a date to be finalised.

And the full crew for Songs of Praise is due to arrive at the centre of the 5,000-strong camp this weekend - but host Aled Jones said he would not be present.

This comes amid a worsening crisis which has seen nine people lose their lives after thousands of migrants stormed the Channel Tunnel in a desperate attempt to build a new life in Britain.

Read more here from The Daily Mail

Comment:

From being politically neutral  and promoting Christian values,  I’ve noticed recently that  Songs of Praise is promoting a left wing agenda and calling Christian Values not relevant.

 

Christian bakery that refused to make gay marriage cake found GUILTY of discrimination, Daily Express, Peter Hein.

A BAKERY that refused to make a pro-gay marriage cake has been found guilty of discrimination, in a landmark ruling.

Asher's Baking Company, of Newtownabbey, County Antrim, Northern Ireland, told some Gareth Lee that he could not have a cake decorated with a pro-gay marriage slogan.

Mr Lee, who is a volunteer of the advocacy group Queer Space then sued the company for discrimination.

After a three-day hearing, it was ruled that Asher's - which describes itself as a Christian bakery - had discriminated against Mr Lee.

Passing judgement, District Judge Isobel Brownlie said: "I believe the defendants did have the knowledge that the plaintiff was gay.

"As much as I acknowledge their religious beliefs this is a business to provide service to all. The law says they must do that.

"The defendants are not a religious organisation. They are a business for profit. There are no exceptions available.

"The defendants have unlawfully discriminated on the grounds of sexual orientation.

"This is direct discrimination for which there is no justification."

Read more here:

 

Christian-owned bakery which refused to make 'Bert and Ernie' gay marriage cake found GUILTY of discrimination

• Ashers Baking Company guilty of discrimination for refusing to make cake
• Christian-owned firm refused to 'go against the bible' for gay marriage cake
• Judge made landmark ruling after bakery was taken to court by Gareth Lee
• He ordered a cake which featured an image of Sesame Street puppets Bert and Ernie below the motto 'Support Gay Marriage' but order was rejected

By Emma Glanfield for MailOnline

A Christian-owned family bakery which refused to make a cake bearing a pro-gay marriage slogan has been found guilty of discrimination after a landmark legal action.

Belfast-based Ashers Baking Company refused to make a cake for gay rights activist Gareth Lee, which featured an image of Sesame Street puppets Bert and Ernie below the motto 'Support Gay Marriage'.

The Northern Ireland Equality Commission took the bakery to court on behalf of Mr Lee and the judge today found the company guilty of 'direct discrimination'.

Giving her ruling at Belfast County Court, district judge Isobel Brownlie said: 'The defendants have unlawfully discriminated against the plaintiff on grounds of sexual discrimination.

'This is direct discrimination for which there can be no justification.'

She ordered the bakery to pay agreed damages of £500 plus court costs.

Mr Lee, a member of the LGBT advocacy group Queer Space, had wanted a cake featuring Sesame Street puppets Bert and Ernie with the slogan 'Support Gay Marriage' for a private function marking International Anti-Homophobia Day.

He paid in full when he placed the order at Ashers' Belfast branch but said he was left stunned two days later, when the company phoned to say it could not be processed.

Daniel McArthur, Ashers general manager, who was supported by his wife Amy and other family members in court today, said prior to the hearing that the bakery had rejected the order because it 'cannot promote a cause that goes against what the Bible says'.

Returning her verdict today, Judge Brownlie said she was satisfied the McArthur family had 'genuine and deeply held religious beliefs' but said they must have been aware that Mr Lee was gay and were aware of the ongoing same sex marriage debate.

The judge said: 'They must have known or had the perception that the plaintiff was gay.

'They must have known that the plaintiff supported gay marriage or associated with others who supported gay marriage.

'They (Ashers) are in a business supplying services to all. The law requires them to do just that.'

The courtroom in Belfast's Laganside complex was packed as the reserved judgement was delivered.

“'WE CANNOT PROMOTE A CAUSE THAT GOES AGAINST THE BIBLE'

A statement released ahead of today's verdict by Daniel McArthur on behalf of Ashers Baking Company.

'It’s now just over a year since Ashers Baking Company declined a customer’s order to decorate a cake with the campaign slogan “Support Gay Marriage”.

'We did not do this because of anything to do with the customer but because of the message – a message supporting a cause with which I and my family fundamentally disagree.

'We happily serve everyone but we cannot promote a cause that goes against what the Bible says about marriage. We have tried to be guided in our actions by our Christian beliefs.

'It has been a difficult time for our family. A year ago, we could not have anticipated that a polite refusal would result in our family being pursued through the courts by a publicly-funded quango.

'Because of the Equality Commission’s decision we have endured many anxious months.

'But we have been sustained throughout by the knowledge that God is faithful. And we have been greatly encouraged by the huge public support we have received – not only here but from around the world.

'We have also been contacted by many people of other faiths and of no faith, and from people who support same-sex marriage as well as people who support traditional marriage.

'Soon we will all know the court’s judgment, after which we may be in a position to make some further comment.'”

Read more here:

 

Legal challenge against 'named person' plans dismissed, BBC Scotland.

A judge has dismissed a legal challenge against Scottish government proposals to appoint a "named person" for every child under 18.

It was brought by a coalition of charities and individuals who argued it breached human rights.

In a judgement issued at the Court of Session, Lord Pentland said the case "fails on all points".

The Scottish government says the proposals would help vulnerable children and families in need.

They are contained in the Children and Young People (Scotland) Act 2014, and are due to come into force in 2016.

Read more here:

Further Reading

Named Person legal challenge dismissed – appeal considered, The Christian Institute

Girls of 11 quizzed about lesbians and how Whitehall zealots are waging war on Christian schools: A Special report by Tom Rawstorne

As her 11-year-old daughter Grace arrived home, Deborah Finch naturally asked her how the day had gone.

Her response could hardly have been more surprising.

She explained that Ofsted had launched a snap inspection of her school in Durham, quizzing pupils about their experiences.

‘Grace told me what she had been asked and I could not believe it,’ says Mrs Finch, 36, herself a teacher at another school. She was asked if she knew what it was to be gay and whether she had any gay friends.

‘She was asked if she knew any lesbians and whether any family members had gay friends. At one point she was even asked whether she had ever felt she was in the wrong body, which completely baffled her as she hadn’t any idea what the woman was talking about.

She felt very embarrassed and uncomfortable — she said she felt under pressure as though she was being force d to sit some kind of test and worried she wasn’t giving the right answers.’

As it turned out, those worries were entirely justified.

Earlier this week, the Department for Education announced it was withdrawing funding from Grace’s school, Durham Free School, and that come Easter, it would close.

The reason? The results of that inspection by Ofsted last November.

‘One day spent in a failing school is one day too many,’ was the reaction of Education Secretary Nicky Morgan, adding: ‘I am deeply concerned when I hear of pupils being let down.’ But while the pupils, parents and staff do feel ‘let down’, it is not by the school — but by Mrs Morgan and by Ofsted.

Read more here:

Daughter's tears over 'lesbian' quiz: Ten-year-old left humiliated after being questioned over homosexuality and asked if she felt 'trapped in her own body', Daily Mail

  Ariella Wilkinson came home crying over Oftsed inspectors' questions

  The schoolgirl had been asked if she felt trapped in her own body

  After becoming embarrassed she is said to have given 'wrong answer'

  She feels to blame for Grindon Hall Christian School's branding as 'intolerant' 

A mother has told of her ten-year-old daughter’s devastation that her school was branded ‘intolerant’ after she gave the wrong answer when asked ‘what is a lesbian’.

Ariella Wilkinson came home crying after Ofsted inspectors interrogated her about homosexuality during a visit to Grindon Hall Christian School.

The free school, in Sunderland, has now been put in special measures after an official report found that discrimination ‘persisted’ at the school because of ‘homophobic language’.

Parents say inspectors ‘aggressively’ questioned just a few young children about lesbian relationships to form the basis of their judgement.

They deny their children are intolerant and are compiling a petition against Ofsted’s decision, which has the potential to close down the well-performing faith school.

Ariella’s mother Lena, 46, said: ‘The questioning was completely inappropriate. They asked her what lesbians were, and whether she felt trapped in someone else’s body.

‘She said she didn’t want to talk about it, because she was embarrassed. She didn’t know why they were asking and she wasn’t prepared for it.

Read more here:

Further Reading:

Is anyone in your school gay? The 'inappropriate' Ofsted questions for children aged just 11 at school where children were branded bigots

MEP ‘appalled’ by Ofsted inspectors’ questions