Elton John invited to ‘see how gay Christians behave’

-14/11/06

The


Elton John invited to ‘see how gay Christians behave’

-14/11/06

The Metropolitan Community Church in East London (MCCEL) has issued an invitation to Sir Elton John following his call for religion to be ‘banned’.

Sir Elton claimed organised religion only worked to chastise homosexuality and convince people it’s wrong.

He said, “Religion promotes the hatred and spite against gays. I would ban religion completely. Organised religion doesn’t seem to work. It turns people into really hateful lemmings and it’s not really compassionate.”

But the Pastor of MCCEL, the Revd Jane Clarke said, “Before you give up entirely on religion, come and see how we do it here.

“As a Christ-centred church of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered communities inviting people of all religions and none to share in an adventure of spirituality and faith, we have a full time ministry to queer people, people with HIV and AIDS and anyone who is on the end of the worldís boot in any way.

“I am certain that Elton will get a better idea of that faith can do if he came to see the love of God demonstrated for all people here at our church. We would be delighted to welcome him.

Rev Clarke continued, “we know that religions havenít always kept an unblemished record in combating the most hateful expressions of homophobia; many of our members have experienced this, which is why we itís so important for us to get it right. The message that God loves all human beings equally is one that needs to be heard by all human beings and we are about letting people know that, and not about telling them they are unlovable. We think this might be an eye-opener for Elton, but weíre delighted to invite him to come and talk to us.”

Sir Elton’s outburst also saddened Ekklesia associate Giles Fraser who helped to found the Inclusive Church movement. He believes the singer’s comments are a popular ‘misconception’ in the gay community.

Fraser says, “I’m sad because it deepens the perception that the church is intrinsically homophobic. I don’t believe it is homophobic, I believe that’s a mistaken interpretation. And (Elton John’s comments) don’t help those struggling to change that perception.”

The think tank Ekklesia is sponsoring a conference in February next year organisaed by the Lesbian and Gay Christian Movement, which will look at the links between religion and homophobia.

The event follows a controversial advert by the Gay Police Association (GPA), placed in the Independent newspaper, which highlighted connections between religious faith and homophobia.


Elton John invited to ‘see how gay Christians behave’

-14/11/06

The Metropolitan Community Church in East London (MCCEL) has issued an invitation to Sir Elton John following his call for religion to be ‘banned’.

Sir Elton claimed organised religion only worked to chastise homosexuality and convince people it’s wrong.

He said, “Religion promotes the hatred and spite against gays. I would ban religion completely. Organised religion doesn’t seem to work. It turns people into really hateful lemmings and it’s not really compassionate.”

But the Pastor of MCCEL, the Revd Jane Clarke said, “Before you give up entirely on religion, come and see how we do it here.

“As a Christ-centred church of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered communities inviting people of all religions and none to share in an adventure of spirituality and faith, we have a full time ministry to queer people, people with HIV and AIDS and anyone who is on the end of the worldís boot in any way.

“I am certain that Elton will get a better idea of that faith can do if he came to see the love of God demonstrated for all people here at our church. We would be delighted to welcome him.

Rev Clarke continued, “we know that religions havenít always kept an unblemished record in combating the most hateful expressions of homophobia; many of our members have experienced this, which is why we itís so important for us to get it right. The message that God loves all human beings equally is one that needs to be heard by all human beings and we are about letting people know that, and not about telling them they are unlovable. We think this might be an eye-opener for Elton, but weíre delighted to invite him to come and talk to us.”

Sir Elton’s outburst also saddened Ekklesia associate Giles Fraser who helped to found the Inclusive Church movement. He believes the singer’s comments are a popular ‘misconception’ in the gay community.

Fraser says, “I’m sad because it deepens the perception that the church is intrinsically homophobic. I don’t believe it is homophobic, I believe that’s a mistaken interpretation. And (Elton John’s comments) don’t help those struggling to change that perception.”

The think tank Ekklesia is sponsoring a conference in February next year organisaed by the Lesbian and Gay Christian Movement, which will look at the links between religion and homophobia.

The event follows a controversial advert by the Gay Police Association (GPA), placed in the Independent newspaper, which highlighted connections between religious faith and homophobia.