Some of you will already be aware of the legal battle that I have been engaged in for the last four years. I was sacked from a medical assessor job with the Department for Work and Pensions, for refusing to use transgender pronouns. My actions were rooted in my Christian faith, and especially in Genesis Chapter 1 verse 27 which tells us quite specifically that God has made us in His image, and that we are created male and female.
That tells us something about the power of almighty God, but also shows how important maleness and femaleness is, and how impossible it is to change from one to another. This is readily backed up by science, philosophy, and common sense.
Three years ago, with the help of the Christian Legal Centre, and the team at Christian Concern, I took my case to an employment tribunal in Birmingham. We had an absolute hammering. The three judges ruled that my Christian beliefs were "not worthy of consideration in a democratic society", and that they were "not compatible with human dignity". That is all very strange since Genesis 1.27 gives us the true source of human dignity. The Birmingham tribunal also implied that everyone was obliged to believe transgender ideology.
It has taken three years to get to next stage, and in March this year we were before the Employment Appeals Tribunal, in London. Now, three months later, a ruling has been given. The EAT has said that my Christian beliefs are compatible with human dignity and are acceptable in a democratic society. This is welcome, since for the last three years I have had to live with the charge that I am like a Nazi, but now I am proven not to be.
The trouble is that the EAT stopped there. Having made my convictions allowable, they failed to give any protection to these beliefs under the law. This is despite the Equalities Act which clearly states that such beliefs are protected. This means that ideologies such as ethical veganism, and transgenderism are protected, but Christianity and belief in God, are not. I understand that the Equalities Act was passed in the first place to stop this very kind of thing happening.
One consideration is that the court pointed out that not all Christians believe what I believe. They took this to mean that I was not therefore a proper example of what a Christian is. There was comparison, I believe, to the teaching of some in the Anglican Church. Question: Why do I have to be an Anglican in order to qualify as a Christian in the eyes of the law?
My larger point, however is this: how can we claim to be Christians at all and not believe in an Almighty God who made all things? Also, how can we deny that the Bible is the foundation document of the Christian Church?
If God did not make all things, He cannot be God. Think about it.
And so the court has afforded protection under the law to many ideologies and world views, but not to Christians. Now, this is important and that is why I am appealing to a higher court and continuing, with the excellent help from the Christian Legal Centre, to stand up for what is right. If I do not win may case for the protection of biblical Christianity, we will not be free to believe and to practise the Christian faith here in the UK. Forced speech will be upon us and everyone will be affected by that. This is just the tip of the forced speech iceberg.
Some Christians believe that it is kind to use transgender pronouns. Kindness, however, like medical practice, begins with truth. I care about my patients, and being told that I have to lie to them by none other than the Government itself, fills me with alarm. Likewise, we should be telling our children that, if you are a girl, that is wonderful, and you will always be a girl. That is what truth requires!
We should also be telling our boys that if they are a boy, that too is wonderful and that they will always be a boy. That too is truth! To tell them that they can choose which sex they want to be is a monstrous lie which will hurt them immeasurably. It is not kindness to lie.
I believe that as Christians we need to believe, and live by what God has said in the Bible. We know that God made us, and we know that human beings have immensely high value and dignity, as the very pinnacle of God's creation. We also know that mankind needs redemption through saving faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
With God's help, and that Of the Christian Legal Centre, I will appeal and continue this battle for as long as it takes. For the sake of us all, losing is not an option.
