Anglican bishop warns of danger to community over gay rights

The Anglican Church of England is being warned of the risk of its leadership becoming too intolerant over the issue of gay marriage, and that it is vulnerable to the influence of extremist groups.
The church has seen its support for gay marriage grow in recent years.
It is understood that the current church leadership is in favour of legalising gay marriage.
It will also be looking to the future to make sure it remains relevant in the public debate, and not become too liberal.
The leader of the Church of Scotland, Justin Welby, has said the church does not consider homosexuality to be a sin.
“I don’t think anyone should be turned away on the street, and I don’t believe it’s appropriate for someone to be denied the opportunity to marry who they really want to marry,” he said.
A spokesman for the Church said the group has no plans to ban same-sex marriage.
“As a Church, we are opposed to discrimination based on sexual orientation,” he added.
In a statement the church said: “We have a duty to the community and as such to act as the most relevant voice in this vital area, and we are clear that there is no place in the church for discrimination based upon sexual orientation.”
We know that in many areas, there are still many people who feel left out.
“However, we believe that this should be a matter for the courts to resolve on their own.”
There is also a growing body of evidence, from the courts and outside the church, that support the view that marriage should be between a man and a woman.
“This is why we support a bill that would allow couples to marry in their own community.”
The Church of Ireland has also been vocal in support of gay rights.
Earlier this year the church issued a statement saying that gay people are not sinners.
The church said the stance has not changed.
It said it is concerned about the spread of the harmful message that same-gender marriage is immoral and that the church is not ready to change its position on this issue.
Church of England leader Justin Welbeck has said he is in support for legalising same-Sex marriage.
He has also said he does not think it is right for a person to be turned out on the streets and denied the right to marry, and has said gay marriage should not be outlawed.
Read more about the gay rights debate: Gay marriage legalised in Australia for the first time in December 2018.
Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott has said that he believes the law should be changed to recognise same- sex marriage.
The bill will be debated in Parliament next week, and will be the subject of a legal challenge from opponents.
Australia’s Anglican Communion is a body of believers in the Anglican communion who have historically stood on the side of traditional marriage.
It has previously said it supports a full marriage equality bill.
But last week the church’s senior pastor, Cardinal George Pell, said he was opposed to a bill to legalise same- gender marriage.