Your Christian beliefs: on a par with racist views?
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Please stand with David and donate today
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Two years ago, we saw one of the most outrageous and bizarre outcomes in Christian Legal Centre's history.
An employment tribunal ruled in Dr David Mackereth's case that the Christian belief that God made humans male and female is not 'worthy of respect in a democratic society'.
The ruling suggests that this basic Christian belief is 'incompatible with human dignity', a status usually reserved for beliefs like racial supremacy.
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This means that Christians who hold this Biblical view could be discriminated against, as their view is not protected by the Equality Act.
I'm writing today to ask you to help make sure we overturn this when we challenge the decision this autumn.
Could you make a difference by making a donation today? Please use the button below or carry on reading to find out more.
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'I can’t use pronouns in this way'
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In 2018, David, an A&E doctor with over 26 years of experience, took on a new job assessing disability benefits.
During his training for the role, the instructor told him to use whatever pronouns a client prefers. In other words, if a person born male wants to be called 'she', David would have to refer to him as 'she' instead of 'he' (and vice versa).
I think you’ll understand David’s response. He respectfully said: “As a Christian, I can’t use pronouns in this way in good conscience.” When the instructor heard this, he said he would need to take it “further up the chain.”
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David was called to speak with senior management but held his ground. He explained: “I am a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ. He made all things, including and especially mankind. We read that he made them ‘male and female’” (Genesis 1:27).
He again explained that in good conscience he couldn’t act against his Biblical beliefs. With that, he was immediately suspended and was subsequently dismissed.
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David chose to honour God’s truth rather than compromise it. He could’ve gone along with what he was being told to do. But rather than compromising on God’s truth, he was prepared to sacrifice his job. All because he loves Jesus more than anything else.
When we helped David challenge his dismissal, the judge decided that his belief in Genesis and his lack of belief in transgenderism were not protected in law, supposedly because they are incompatible with the dignity of trans people.
Shockingly, this puts this basic Christian truth in the same category as racist and Neo-Nazi views: ‘not worthy of respect in a democratic society’.
That means that if you hold to what God says about men and women, your Christian views may not be protected in UK courts.
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Why it's critical that we win David's appeal
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David’s case isn’t just about him. It’s about all of us.
The freedom to live in line with the Christian understanding of what it is to be male or female is at stake. David's case is already being cited in legal textbooks, meaning that lawyers are being led to believe that this Christian belief isn't protected under the Equality Act.
This sends the signal to employers that Christians are not free to live in line with their beliefs at work. And it could even scare Christians into going along with falsehood, for fear of losing their job.
Truth matters. It's not compassionate to speak falsehood about whether someone is a man or woman. If Christians don’t speak truthfully, people suffering through gender confusion will be told that the answer is to transition – leaving them further from the truth, further from God and irreparably harmed.
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Not only is our society believing in untrue transgender identities, it’s now forcing others to go along with a lie.
What other lies might society enforce, in the name of ‘dignity’ and ‘fundamental rights’? If you gently told someone they were rejecting God or that the only way to be forgiven is through faith in Jesus Christ, would the courts say that you were attacking their dignity? This threat to free speech could even affect the freedom to preach the gospel.
There’s no knowing where it would stop.
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Will you stand with David?
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The door to overturning this ruling is open.
A similar case recently won on appeal - we can be hopeful that the decision in David's case will be overruled as well.
But we need to do everything in our power to make sure we do. Winning will draw a line in the sand to say that the law really does protect Christian beliefs about sex and gender.
Could you make a donation today to enable us to do that? No amount is too small.
I’m writing to you today about this because right now our legal team is working hard to prepare for the hearing in October and I want to make sure that David gets the best possible legal support.
Your donation could achieve so much, as we work together to protect freedom, speak truth and show compassion in an increasingly confused society. With your help we can show the world that the truth that God made us male and female, in the image of God, is not an attack on human dignity but is its very foundation.
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Thank you for your support. You allow this work to happen. And thank you for taking the time to read this. Be encouraged – we know that with God, all things are possible.
In him,
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Andrea Williams
Chief Executive, Christian Concern & Christian Legal Centre
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P.S. Please don’t feel obliged to give – we always trust in God to provide. Whether or not you are able to give today, will you commit to pray?
P.P.S. If you'd prefer to give over the phone, please call us on 020 3327 1122, 9am-5pm, Monday to Friday.
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