This year’s Greenbelt festival is causing concern in some quarters because of the plans to welcome as a speaker the openly gay Bishop of New Hampshire, Gene Robinson. Greenbelt will also give a platform to other gay rights campaigners such as the Rev Giles Fraser and worship groups OuterSpace and Journey.

By way of response, the Church Mission Society is considering holding seminars in which the orthodox view of human sexuality will be promoted.

One thing that intrigued me about all of this was a comment by the Rev Sharon Ferguson, spokesperson for the Lesbian and Gay Christian Movement. While welcoming ‘open discussion’, the Rev Ferguson added,

if it is being done in a way in which homosexuality is considered as wrong then I would have concerns about that sort of thing which, as I have said before, leads to homophobia.

Well, that’s a discussion-stopper if ever there was one. What is being claimed here is that if people disagree with a certain kind of behaviour then they will necessarily end up hating or fearing those who engage in that behaviour. That’s absurd. And you don’t need a certificate in logic, or even in common sense, to see that it’s absurd.

As reported in Church of England Newspaper, 7th August 2009