Muslims defend Catholic stance in gay row

Muslims defend Catholic stance in gay row

Ruth Gledhill, Religion Correspondent
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The Muslim Council of Britain has backed the leaders of the Roman Catholic and Anglican churches in the adoption row.

The intervention adds to the pressure on the Government to create an exemption for religious adoption societies under the new Sexual Orientation Regulations.

This week the Anglican Archbishops of Canterbury and York entered the debate with a strong statement of support for the Catholic Archbishop of Westminster, Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor, who wrote to every member of the Cabinet warning that Catholic agencies could not accept a law that would force them to place children with gay couples.

Catholic leaders have given warning that the church’s seven adoption agencies, which placed 227 children last year, cannot breach Vatican guidelines against allowing gay couples to adopt, and would have no alternative but to close.

The Muslim Council said that it backed the churches’ “principled stand”.

Dr Muhammad Abdul Bari, the Secretary-General, said: “The right to practise one’s faith or the freedom to have no belief is a cornerstone of our society, as is the right of all to live free from unfair discrimination and harassment.

“Homosexuality is forbidden in Islam. The Sexual Orientation Regulations as we understand them do not promote homosexuality but would provide protection against discrimination and harassment on account of sexual orientation.

“As Muslims, we are obliged to uphold the moral standards and codes of conduct dictated by our faith.”

He said that the refusal to permit an exemption was inconsistent with previous antidiscrimination legislation.

He added that the regulations should “take full account of our multifaith, multicultural, multiethnic society and make accommodation to accord with differing beliefs and values”.

Catholic leaders in Scotland have raised the stakes in the row by warning senior Cabinet ministers from Scotland that they will campaign against Labour candidates in the Scottish elections in May over the issue.

Archbishop Mario Conti, the vice-president of the Bishops’ Conference in Glasgow, wrote to Gordon Brown, the Chan-cellor, John Reid, the Home Secretary, Alistair Darling, the Trade Secretary, Douglas Alexander, the Transport and Scottish Secretary, and Des Browne, the Defence Secretary, and repeated his warning to the Prime Minister that disallowing Catholic agencies to discriminate will be a “betrayal”.

The Times
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2-2566808,00.html extracted 21/01/07