David Cameron told Britain’s
Christians he doesn’t want to fall out with them over plans to
allow gay marriage, as he hailed a “Christian fightback”
against attempts to ban crucifixes and public prayer.
“I think there’s something of a fightback going on, and we
should welcome that,” the prime minister told guests including
church ministers and Christian politicians at an Easter
reception in his official Downing Street residence in London
today. “The values of the Bible, the values of Christianity are
the values that we need.”
Former Archbishop of Canterbury George Carey said Feb. 11
that Christians face “gradual marginalization” in the U.K. He
was referring to a case in which a local council in southwest
England was banned by a court from opening its meetings with
prayers. Cameron cited the case in his speech and pointed out
that the government had responded by changing the law.
The prime minister faces a battle with some Christians over
his plans to introduce same-sex marriages. The U.K. currently
has civil partnerships, which offer most of the legal benefits
of marriage. The government is asking for the views of the
public on allowing gay couples to be married in civil
ceremonies, though not in church.
Cameron offered what he described as a “plea” to the
assembled churchmen. “I hope we won’t fall out too much over
gay marriage,” he said. “There’ll be some strong arguments and
some strong words.”
‘Unjustified Change’
The Archbishop of York, John Sentamu, told BBC television
last month that the proposals represented an “unjustified
change” to the law and required the consent of the Church of
England. Sentamu is a leading candidate to become the next
Archbishop of Canterbury, the head of the Anglican church.
Guests at today’s reception told the prime minister after
his speech he was wrong to be looking at the issue, arguing that
the legal definition of marriage should remain a union between
This article originally appeared on: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-04-03/cameron-pushing-gay-marriage-hails-christian-fightback.html