Archbishop of Canterbury Says Church Still 'Wrestling' With Homosexuality
Speaking at an event at Lambeth Palace in London Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr. Rowan Williams explained that the Church was still grappling with how to deal with the issue of gay marriage, while high ranking members of parliament continue to push for same-sex marriage.
"What's frustrating is that we still have Christian people whose feelings about it are so strong, and sometimes so embarrassed and ashamed and disgusted, that just sends out a message of unwelcome, of lack of understanding, of lack of patience. So whatever we think about it, we need, as a Church, to be tackling what we feel about it," the Archbishop told attendees.
The Roman Catholic Church and the Church of England are both holding reservations over repeated claims that the British government would not force a religious institution to perform same-sex ceremonies; however, the Deputy Prime Minister recently came out in favor of those ceremonies being performed in churches.
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Nick Clegg, Deputy Prime Minister, revealed that it was his personal view that homosexual couples be allowed to marry in religious institutions. It took a contradictory stance with Prime Minster David Cameron, who stated that religious institutions would not be forced to perform same-sex ceremonies.
"This is a personal view at the moment, but I think that in exactly the same way that we shouldn't force any church to conduct gay marriage, we shouldn't stop any church that wants to conduct gay marriage," Clegg said during an interview with the London Evening Standard.
He added: "I don't see why two individuals who … show commitment to each other should not be able to do so in a way that is socially recognized as being marriage."
But opponents of same-sex marriage have called the deputy's comments purely political, lambasting the Deputy Prime Minister for trying to gain support for his party ahead of the world pride festival in London.
"This is yet another demonstration, if one was needed, as to why the proposals to rewrite the definition of marriage should be ditched … Mr. Clegg, is shifting the goalposts in a totally transparent attempt to garner support for his party … He is playing politics with marriage," Colin Hart, campaign director of the Coalition for Marriage, told local media.
