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I’m not sure Cardinal Keith O’Brien is especially interested in the finer points of public relations. If I enjoyed the backing of over a billion practicing Catholics I probably wouldn’t be that bothered either.
Which is just as well, because his article in yesterday’s Sunday Telegraph on gay marriage, together with his rant on this morning’s Today programme, has, at least in the eyes of this avowed agnostic, done about as much for the image of his Church as Len McCluskey’s threat to sabotage the Olympics has done for the image of moderate trade unionism.
Until yesterday I had some sympathy for those from within the various religious communities who had concerns about proposed same-sex marriage legislation. I don’t agree with them, and I support a change in the law, but nor do I ascribe to the view of some self-styled progressives that their opposition is born of latent bigotry. The Church has taken a heavy buffeting from advances in both science and social attitudes, and many people of faith have struggled, in most cases honorably, to align deeply held beliefs with the changing world around them.
They need to get themselves a better advocate than Keith O’Brien. I’ll leave the theology to others. But I can’t remember the last time I read a more morally and intellectually bankrupt rant from a senior member of the clergy.
O’Brien could have attempted to explain, reason and persuade. Instead, he chose to go blasting in with all the tact and subtlety of a Chicago mobster. Marriage is my turf: the rest of you better just shut up and back off. “As an institution, marriage long predates the existence of any state or government. It was not created by governments and should not be changed by them. Instead, recognising the innumerable benefits which marriage brings to society, they should act to protect and uphold marriage, not attack or dismantle it.” Read more
Sources
- Dan Hodges in The Telegraph
- Image: Top News
- See also Huffington Post: English Catholics Campaign Against Gay Marriage
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