Professor Rosaria Butterfield gives a powerful and brave speech to students.

[bluehillside Retd.]

Vlad,

Evwee day, in evwee way we're getting better and better.

Bit early to be on the sauce isn't it?

[jeremyp]

The morality upon which our western civilisation was built derives from the teachings of the Christian Bible.

Nobody cares. What they do care about is busy bodies like you sticking their noses into matters that don't concern them just because you've got this old book full of myths and nonsense that tells you you can. Stop it.

[Nearly Sane]

The morality upon which our western civilisation was built derives from the teachings of the Christian Bible.

Which approves of slavery, rape, and genocide.

[Nearly Sane]

Evwee day, in evwee way we're getting better and better.

Missing the time when you could own slaves. Must be tough having your support for homophobis called out
 

[Gordon]

The morality upon which our western civilisation was built derives from the teachings of the Christian Bible.

Maybe - but these days some of the damage inflicted by Christianity is being undone and its influence is reducing in this part of the world (as we saw in relation to marriage legislation).

[SteveH]

There is no biblical justification for miscegenation

I think you mean the opposite - that there is no biblical justification for opposing miscegenation.

[Aruntraveller]

Meanwhile in the real world away from your cosy fantasies Alan, a chance to look at what religion can do if it goes unchecked:

https://www.zawya.com/en/world/middle-east/13-sentenced-to-death-for-homosexuality-in-yemen-source-few6tnlh

Oh I know Islam is the source and you'll say Christianity is different, but your very insistence on preserving some kind of privileged prejudice speaks to how very dangerous religion is.

[torridon]

This is not about personal preferences.
My concern is the eternal salvation of our human souls.

If God doesn't like gays he wouldn't create gay souls in the first place, would he ? Seems you live in a bottomless pit of confusion; but hey, that's religion for you.

[Alan Burns]

If God doesn't like gays he wouldn't create gay souls in the first place, would he ? Seems you live in a bottomless pit of confusion; but hey, that's religion for you.

God's love is unconditional.
God loves the sinner but not the sin.
We are all human, and we all have weaknesses - but we need to recognise our weaknesses and enlist God's help to cope with them in order to enter a full loving and richly rewarding relationship with God.  It is sin which separates us from God's love.

[bluehillside Retd.]

AB,

God's love is unconditional.

And yet so often the supposed “teachings” of this supposed god would indicate the opposite of that, with real time harm done as a consequence to real people in the real world by those who would be validated by this idiocy.

God loves the sinner but not the sin.

And what kind of morally bankrupt piece of shit would decide that who some people go to bed with is “sinful”?

We are all human, and we all have weaknesses –

Whom our nature determines we should go to bed with isn’t a “weakness” ffs.

…but we need to recognise our weaknesses…

Not when they’re not weaknesses at all we don’t.

…and enlist God's help to cope with them in order to enter a full loving and richly rewarding relationship with God.

A clusterfuck of mindless blind faith assertions there…

It is sin which separates us from God's love.

Does anyone other than you actually believe this kind of ignorant shit to be true these days?

Seriously though? 

[Gordon]

God's love is unconditional.
God loves the sinner but not the sin.
We are all human, and we all have weaknesses - but we need to recognise our weaknesses and enlist God's help to cope with them in order to enter a full loving and richly rewarding relationship with God.  It is sin which separates us from God's love.

Sounds very puritan, Alan, which reminds me of H L Mencken's definition of Puritanism; "The haunting fear that someone, somewhere, may be happy".

[Alan Burns]

Sounds very puritan, Alan, which reminds me of H L Mencken's definition of Puritanism; "The haunting fear that someone, somewhere, may be happy".

The happiest people I know are fellow Christians.

[Gordon]

The happiest people I know are fellow Christians.

Super - then perhaps they could leave others to enjoy their own happiness (provided their happiness is legal) without pontificating on areas that really are none of their business.

[Nearly Sane]

The happiest people I know are fellow Christians.

Happy homophobes are still homophobes.

[Aruntraveller]

Yay. These happy Christians donating money to Uganda to promote the killing of gay people. What a jolly jape, eh Alan?

https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/5050/africa-us-christian-right-50m/

Shiny happy people holding hands
Shiny happy people laughing

[torridon]

God's love is unconditional.
God loves the sinner but not the sin.
We are all human, and we all have weaknesses - but we need to recognise our weaknesses and enlist God's help to cope with them in order to enter a full loving and richly rewarding relationship with God.  It is sin which separates us from God's love.

Which does not even attempt to address the unlogic of a God creating sinners and then blaming them for being sinful.  Clearly this is down to God, not his creations, who have no say in their creation.

[Alan Burns]

Which does not even attempt to address the unlogic of a God creating sinners and then blaming them for being sinful.  Clearly this is down to God, not his creations, who have no say in their creation.

God gave us the gift of free will so that we could freely choose to accept Him - or reject Him.

[Aruntraveller]

God gave us the gift of free will so that we could freely choose to accept Him - or reject Him.

Does that include the free will to kill gay people? Are you accepting him or rejecting him by killing gay people?

Do you condemn Christian evangelicals putting funding into Africa to achieve these killings?

[Nearly Sane]

God gave us the gift of free will so that we could freely choose to accept Him - or reject Him.

And be homophobic or not.

[Alan Burns]

Super - then perhaps they could leave others to enjoy their own happiness (provided their happiness is legal) without pontificating on areas that really are none of their business.

Our mission to spread the Good News is fundamental to share with others the reason for our existence.

[Nearly Sane]

Our mission to spread the Good News is fundamental to share with others the reason for our existence.

The 'good news' of your hatred of gay people.

[Walt Zingmatilder]

Of the two topics being discussed it's not easy to weaponise
this feature of increasingly secular Britain

https://www.antislavery.org/slavery-today/slavery-uk/

[Nearly Sane]

Of the two topics being discussed it's not easy to weaponise
this feature of increasingly secular Britain

https://www.antislavery.org/slavery-today/slavery-uk/

Secularism, which as ever you misrepresent, doesn't gave a book that tells you how to beat slaves, and to kill homisexuals. You, as a Christian do, and you tout that book as a good thing. You worship hate.

[torridon]

God gave us the gift of free will so that we could freely choose to accept Him - or reject Him.

Which does not even attempt to address the unlogic of a God creating sinners and then blaming them for being sinful.  As ever, all you do is sidestep the contradictions in your beliefs rather than addressing them.

[Gordon]

Our mission to spread the Good News is fundamental to share with others the reason for our existence.

Perhaps you should keep it to yourselves - that you guys have caught something nasty doesn't mean the rest of us want it too.