Marriage Minutes

 In this latest Marriage Minutes, Dr Sharon James explains why the attempts by the UK Government to introduce same-gender 'marriage, is totally undemocratic.  It's always worth a couple of minutes of your time!



Don't forget - if you haven't already done so, please respond to the Scottish Government's Consultation.  Details are given below!

Redefinition of Marriage in Scotland – PLEASE ACT!

As already stated, the Scottish Government is currently consulting on the possible impact of redefining marriage.  We have seen examples, even before a change in the law, of ordinary people being penalised for believing marriage should only be between one man and one woman (my own situation is a case in point, but it is not the only one - see http://www.christian.org.uk/news/primary-teacher-job-threat-over-gay-marriage-storybook/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+christianinstitute+%28The+Christian+Institute%29).

Therefore, it is vital for as many people as possible to respond to the consultation before it closes on March 20th.  There are two ways by which you may take action:

1. Supporters in Scotland should have received a letter this week from CARE which contains an advice booklet for submitting a response which you can follow.

NB. Please remember to try to draft responses to questions in your own words.  There are also briefings available here: Short Briefing | Full Briefing and further information on responding can be found on the Scottish Government website here.

2. If you are short of time you can respond online using our response form which can be found here.  This will submit pre-drafted answers which is better than not responding at all but please, if you have time, try to submit your response as outlined in Option 1.

This is a very significant stage in the battle to maintain marriage as it has always been, and I would urge all who care for traditional marriage, as ordained by God, to make a response.  

Marriage Consultation.

The high number of 'hits' continues!  I hope that many of those who have checked out this blog will do so at least one more time, in order to read the following.

In the next couple of days, supporters in Scotland will receive a postal mailing from CARE which contains information to help them respond to the Scottish Government's ongoing consultation on the implementation of their plans to redefine marriage.  In particular, the consultation looks at the impact of redefining marriage on civil liberties, e.g. for teachers, registrars and public authority workers.  As you will appreciate, my own case has a bearing on this!  However, there will be many who are not on the CARE mailing list - or on any other that might be used.  Accordingly, I am providing the links to both the consultation paper and the CARE briefing.

The best way to respond to the consultation, which closes on 20th March, is to formulate a personal response, using your own words.  You can do this by completing the form on the Scottish Government website which can be found here.  A CARE for Scotland briefing giving advice on what you might like to say can be found here.

A webpage will also be published next week to help those who are pushed for time make a submission online – do look out for this next week!

Thank you for all of the support that you can provide to uphold the current, God-instituted, definition of marriage.  Please share the above information with as many people as possible!

Marriage - there's no getting away from it!

Having just read that SNP leader, Alex Salmond, has publicly given his personal backing to the introduction of full homosexual/lesbian (let's call a spade 'a spade', and not 'a manually-operated agricultural digging implement') marriage, I am astounded by the reported words of Tim Hopkins, director of the Equality Network: “We very much welcome Alex Salmond’s personal position on the issue. Whoever wins the election, we look forward to a consultation and then legislation.”

Let me read that again!   "... we look forward to a consultation and then legislation.”   This gives me the impression that this "Equality Network" or, at least, its director, has already decided what the outcome of the consultation will be!!  That, I would suggest, does smack of more than a little arrogance.

Of course - and at the risk of "Anonymous" (see Comments under my post on Good Friday) seeing me as even more of a "homophobic" "bigot" than he already thinks that I am - this is the sort of attitude that this (small) section of the population seems to be increasingly displaying.  This is why they, either individually or in their lobby groups (and, it seems, with the financial support of the British taxpayer through the involvement - always in support of those who insist on living out this perverse and unproductive lifestyle - of the government-funded EHRC) appear to think that the Christian community, on whose beliefs this nation was founded, are 'easy meat' for legal action, sometimes on the flimsiest of grounds and, indeed, sometimes appearing very much like entrapment.

Mr Salmond is, of course, as is every other individual, entitled to his personal point of view.  However, as the article suggests, he may have done his party a great dis-service as there may be many who, in the light of his statement, will be reconsidering their support for the SNP at the forthcoming elections to the Scottish Parliament.

The listening PM!!!

I am so proud of my Prime Minister!  How brave of him to announce, with regard to changes in the NHS in England, that he and the Coalition Government are going to listen to the people who are most involved.  Well done, sir!  You deserve the congratulations.

However, now that you have set such a worthwhile precedent, may one expect the announcement of further listening exercises?  If the Prime Minister is short of ideas, I would suggest that he consult the people who are most involved concerning our continuing membership of the discredited, disastrous, debacle that is known as the European Union!  Since the people who are most involved are in that particular case, the British people as a whole and, especially, the hard-pressed tax-payer, this would require a referendum.  I await the announcement.

May I also suggest to the Prime Minister that he withdraw the £650 million grant that he has made - without, to the best of my knowledge, any consultation with Parliament, let alone the taxpayer who is funding it - to the nuclear weapon holding, and space exploring, nation of Pakistan?  This is the country in which Section 295c of the Penal Code allows minority groups to be targeted if they say, or are even falsely alleged to have said, something considered to be uncomplimentary about the Islamic prophet, Muhammad.  Yet the P.M. doesn't even lay down conditions to go along with his beneficence.  I am all for supporting those in genuine need - but it should be genuine!

The PM might also consider listening to those who are, currently, of pensionable age.  He might explain to them the rationale behind the proposed introduction of a straightforward single State Pension being awarded only to "new" pensioners - while the existing ones have to continue to go through the minefield of form-filling in order to obtain that for which they have given a lifetime's work.  Surely, if "we are all in this together", then all should be treated equally!

Finally, the PM might consider the unwelcome ramifications of the Human Rights Act, 1998.  Did he not actually promise a new British Bill of Rights?  When is he going to deliver on that promise.  If he is concerned about the withdrawal of support from his Coalition partners, I would suggest that he has nothing about which to worry.  They've had almost a year of ministerial cars, and the other perks of being in government.  Oh, they'll shout a bit, and insist that they are not in favour.  But does he honestly think that they will do anything to bring down the government?  As is often asked, "Do turkeys vote for Christmas?"

So come on, Mr Cameron.  make me - and, I suspect, a lot of other people - even more proud of you.   And please start with that referendum on our continuing membership of the EU!