Judiciary won't allow Christian beliefs

Judiciary won't allow Christian beliefs
Magistrate forced out of family court for opposing homosexual adoptions

A magistrate judge in Sheffield, England, has been told he cannot serve on the local court's Family Panel, even though he's been recognized as having "an unblemished record and is well regarded by fellow magistrates" because he is a Christian.

"This case is a clear picture of how Christian faith is becoming privatized in society," said Andrea Williams, of the Lawyers Christian Fellowship. "It is yet another example of the repression of Christian conscience and signals the prevalence of a secular 'new morality' and the erosion of Christian values at the expense of our children's welfare."

The case arose when McClintock realized he would be assigned to hear cases involving adoption by homosexual couples, which are allowed now under England's Civil Partnerships Act 2002. Realizing the concerns that might arise, he asked that his religious beliefs be accommodated and he be "screened" from such cases.

He also expressed concern that children would be put at risk by the unproven social experiment of homosexual duo adoptions.

"Andrew McClintock believes that the best interests of the child are served by placing them in a situation where they would have both a mother and a father and therefore he could not agree to participate in gay adoption," Williams said. "The imposition of secular values in every aspect of our lives will force those who hold Christian beliefs out of jobs. It will be to the detriment of the whole of society."

McClintock took his case to the Employment Tribunal in Sheffield, where he'd been a Justice of the Peace since 1988 after he was told in 2004 he must preside over cases that involved homosexual duos proposing to adopt. His lawsuit was against the Lord Chancellor and the Department of Constitutional Affairs, in which he explained that he had suffered discrimination because of his religious beliefs.

His request for accommodation was called for under Regulation 10 of the Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations 2003.

The Tribunal, however, said the case did not involve religious freedom or conscience. Further, the Tribunal concluded even if Mr. McClintock had been able to show he made his decision to resign based on his religious beliefs, there still was no case for discrimination.

"If a judge personally has particular views on any subject, he or she must put those views to the back of his or her mind when applying the law of the land impartially," the Tribunal ordered.

"This ruling is going to make it harder for conscientious people: whether they are JPs in the family court, or otherwise involved with children, or maybe with different matters of conscience," McClintock said. "Anyone who holds seriously to the traditional morals and family values of Jews, Christians or Muslims will think twice before taking on such a job."

He cited expert witnesses in the case who reported "there was little research into the effect of same-sex nurture on children's development, and that what had been established was worrying," in suggesting that children will be the ones who end up suffering.

A report in the Telegraph said the decision came as the government in England prepared to introduce a plan to prevent homosexuals from being discriminated against in the "provision of goods and services." And the report noted the Sexual Orientation Regulations now could require schools to give equal weight in sex education classes to homosexual and heterosexual practices.

McClintock was represented by Paul Diamond, who also handled the case of Nadia Eweida, who WND reported was suspended from her job at British Airways for wearing a cross. Willie Walsh, the airline's chief executive, later ordered a policy change allowing the employee to wear the cross.

Also threatened by England's homosexual agenda are all of the nine Catholic adoption agencies that operate there, because under the government plan they would be required to provide children to homosexual duos, while the Vatican teaches that is "gravely immoral."

Cardinal Keith O'Brien, the Archbishop of St Andrews and Edinburgh, has said that the legislation is an attack on religious freedom.

McClintock, 63, a management consultant, is a father and grandfather.