A U.K. high court ruled recently that a Christian couple is unfit to foster young children because of their faith’s view on homosexuality.

Owen and Eunice Johns, who are Pentecostal Christians, were told in the ruling that they could not offer foster care to children if they were going to tell them that homosexuality is wrong, The Guardian said.

Lord Justice Munby and Mr. Justice Beatson ruled that homosexual rights ‘should take precedence’ over faith values and said local authorities are duty-bound to ‘safeguard and promote the welfare’ of children in foster care, The Daily Mail said.

The ruling said, “There is no place in British law for Christian beliefs,” according to The Telegraph.

Owen, 65, and Eunice Johns, 62, had fostered 15 children since 1992. After they took a temporary break from fostering, they applied again in 2007 before the Derby city council, The Daily Mail said.

However, a social worker told them their beliefs regarding a homosexual lifestyle may conflict with the 2007 Equality Act (Sexual Orientation) Regulations. The couple, through the Christian Legal Center, raised the issue to the High Court in London, The Guardian said.

In their pleading they sought clarification of the law, and asked that their faith not be an obstacle to their qualification to offer short-term respite care for children aged five to 10, according to The Daily Mail.

The Johnses, who have four grown children and six grandchildren, were described by social workers as “kind and hospitable” people who “respond sensitively” to children, according to The Daily Mail.

Archbishop of Canterbury Lord Carey supported the Johnses and in an open letter stated that the rights of homosexuals are being given preference over the rights of others, The Daily Mail reported.

Risk of infection

However the Equality and Human Rights Commission argued that children, if placed under temporary care of the Johnses, might be ‘infected’ by Christian beliefs, and could harm the children with its discriminatory effects, The Guardian said.

The ruling said, “No one is asserting that Christians (or, for that matter, Jews or Muslims) are not ‘fit and proper’ persons to foster or adopt. No one is seeking to delegitimize Christianity or any other faith or belief. On the contrary, it is fundamental to our law and our way of life that everyone is equal before the law and equal as a human being…entitled to dignity and respect. We are, however, entitled to take judicial notice of the fact that, whereas the Sharia is still understood in many places as making homosexuality a capital offence…the Church of England permits its clergy, so long as they remain celibate, to enter into civil partnerships. We live in this country in a democratic and pluralistic society, in a secular state, not a theocracy,” The Guardian reported.

The Johnses told reporters that they believe homosexuality is against God’s law, but they would “accept and love” any child and they are not homophobic. They “only wanted to offer a loving home to a child in need,” The Daily Mail said.

The Johnses lawyer, Andrea Minichiello Williams said, “The law has been increasingly interpreted by judges in a way which favors homosexual rights over freedom of conscience,” according to The Guardian.

Others however welcomed the ruling. Ben Summerskill of Stonewall, which advocates gay rights, told The Guardian, “In any fostering case the interests of the 60,000 children in care should override the bias of any prospective parent. If you wish to be involved in the delivery of a public service you should be prepared to provide it fairly to anyone.”

Rt. Rev. Michael Nazir-Ali, former bishop of Rochester told The Telegraph, “[T]his spate of judgments…leaves no room for conscience of believers [and will] exclude Christians, Muslims and Orthodox Jews from whole swaths of public life, including adoption and fostering.”

Canon Dr. Chris Sugden of the Anglican Mainstream told The Telegraph, “The judgment asserts that there is no hierarchy of rights, but itself implies there is one in which the right to practice one’s religion is subordinated to the secular assumptions about equality.”

Mrs. Johns, a retired nurse, told The Daily Mail that they visited a gay nephew and his partner in San Francisco in the past.

Mr. Johns said, “Eight-year-olds we have looked after want to play, not talk about their sexuality,” The Daily Mail reported.

http://theundergroundsite.com/index.php/2011/03/u-k-court-rules-christ...

Submitted by andie531 on Wed, 2011-03-02 01:38

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