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Christian marriage push escalates

By on March 16, 2012

Wallabies captain David Pocock has cited his Christian faith as the reason he is in favour of a change to the Marriage Act to include same-sex couples.

“It’s my understanding that Jesus was on the side of the marginalised and the oppressed. And also that God is love,” Pocock said.

“So as a Christian I can’t just stand in silence on the issue of marriage equality. My faith necessitates that I advocate for it.”

Australian Marriage Equality (AME) national convenor Alex Greenwich used the statement to launch a web tool to help Christian supporters easily make submissions to the current Senate inquiry into marriage equality.

“Mr Pocock joins a growing number of vocal Christian supporters of marriage equality. We hope their voices are heard by the current Senate inquiry into marriage equality,” Greenwich said.

“Polling late last year showed 53 percent of Christians support marriage equality, Galaxy’s most recent poll showed 62 percent of Australians support marriage equality, and when given assurances about religious protections, support is further strengthened.”

Baptist, Uniting, Anglican, Jewish, and Metropolitan Community Church clergy from across Australia have already written to all members of the federal House of Representatives,  asking them to support a motion introduced by Tasmanian independent Andrew Wilkie about marriage equality and religion.

“While the issue of same-sex marriage is supported by some churches and opposed by others, one area that all churches would agree on is that religious ministers should be under no obligation to perform same-sex marriages if it does not accord with the doctrines of their faith,” the letter reads.

Greenwich praised the letter as a “much needed sign of maturity in an often heated debate”.

“Rather than engaging in alarmist scaremongering, this group of 15 respected clergy have taken steps to help us reassure faith groups that no church will be under any obligation to marry same-sex couples,” he said.

“We hope this motion will send a clear message that the proposed amendments to the Marriage Act are about civil marriage, and will not affect the way any church chooses to practise or define marriage.

“We hope support for this motion sends a clear message to Bob Katter, the Australian Christian lobby and other concerned groups that we come in peace.”

 

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5 Comments

  1. DavidW

    March 16, 2012 at 8:37 am


    This is great news! No longer can the tiny but vocal kil-joy band
    of evangelical ACL Australian Christian Lobby hardliners led by Brigadeer ‘General’ Jim Wallace continue to try to speak for all religions!
    The multi faith religious supporters of 100% Equal Civil Marriage in a govt registry office can now have their voice heard!!!! (On top of that, many of those supporters ALSO support equal religious marriage, such as the Worldwide MCC Church.)
    Yay!!

  2. Harry

    March 17, 2012 at 11:52 am


    This article is very inaccurate!
    (1) The Metropolitan Community Church is a false gay church. Quoting a cult carries no value in this debate.
    (2) I know of many Baptists & Uniting pastors who oppose gay marriage
    (3) The Uniting Church has only a few leaders in support the rest are horrified that they would be included in supporting gay marriage

    I have never heard of the poll quoting Christians.

    Finally and unfortunately David Pocock has not read his Bible in particular the Book of Romans. Love is one characteristics of God. David a simplistic view of Christianity.

  3. Helen

    March 17, 2012 at 9:25 pm


    Well done him – a right (by which I mean correct) thinking christian. He is the sort of person Alex Greenwith et al should get to talk to the coalition members of Parliament.

  4. John Radek

    March 19, 2012 at 12:04 am


    Jesus quite clearly said, “For this cause, a man shall leave his father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife, and the two will become one flesh”. Matthew Ch 19 verse 5.
    The Bible calls homosexuality a sin, equal with any other sin. Man is born into sin, but has a choice whether to remain in sin or seek Jesus, who has provided the way out. Many homosexuals already have.

  5. Angel Carrasco

    June 17, 2012 at 4:43 pm


    Harry and John you both know your bible so well that you both must continue to communicate the good news to all. I wish to join you both in your endevour because you seem to have missed some other points apart from Lev 18:22 clearly stating that homosexuality is an abomination. Dreadful…Lev 24:44 states that people of the bible can possess slaves and Exodus 12:7 even allows selling your own daughter into slavery. Another thing we should stress is that Lev 15:19-24 does not allow any contact at all with women while she is in her menstrual cycle. Lev 1-9 also has some great points about how to offer the burnt offerings of a bull for the greater glory of God. Exodus 35:2 forbids doing any sort of work on the Sabbath ( I hope you weren’t writing your above comments on the Sabbath!!). this is a problem because the same sections says that if you did work on the Sabbath you should be put to death !!! As are all blasphemers according to Lev 24:10-16. Harry I hope this is not a too simplistic picture of scripture for you, as I have attempted to communicate the bible literally to you and I hope you can appreciate my christian logic. Oh, forgot to mention about lev 11:10 and that eating shellfish is an abmonination…….perhaps we should picket seafood restaurants …after all it sounds like a dreadfully serious mortal sin as well !!!!!!

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