Church of England Faces Calls to Repent Over Past Support for Banning ‘Conversion Therapy’

The Church of England’s General Synod passed a motion in July 2017 that endorsed the Memorandum of Understanding on Conversion Therapy in the UK, signed in November 2015 by the Royal College of Psychiatrists and others. The motion stated that the practice of gay conversion therapy “has no place in the modern world, is unethical, potentially harmful and not supported by evidence.”

The same motion called on the Church to be sensitive to, and to listen to, contemporary expressions of gender identity.

The source material describes a draft ‘Conversion Practices Bill’ that was then undergoing pre-legislative scrutiny in the Westminster Parliament. Synod’s motion said that if the bill became law, Synod “will get what it asked for.” The draft defines an offence in terms of conduct carried out with the intention of changing a person’s identity, including an intention “to believe that they have or do not have, a transgender identity or a particular transgender identity.”

The draft includes an exception for health care workers, unless the person “acts in a way that falls far below the standards reasonably expected of a person in their position.” It states that whether conduct amounts to abuse “is a question of fact to be determined by reference to all the circumstances of the case.” One offence described in the draft applies where a practice causes “serious alarm or distress to the individual which has a substantial adverse effect on their usual day-to-day activities.”

Under the draft, the maximum penalty for an offence would be five years in prison, a fine, or both. The bill also states that an offence can be committed by “bodies corporate and unincorporated bodies,” and that a relevant officer who authorises, permits, participates in, or fails to take all reasonable steps to prevent the offence may also commit it.

On 1 July, responding to a question in the House of Lords from the Bishop of Leicester, Lord Collins of Highbury spoke on behalf of the Government. He said the Government had “no intention of interfering with people’s right to religious belief and expression” and was “not seeking to prevent people living a life that aligns with their religious or cultural values.” He said the Government was “targeting clear instances of abuse,” and that “an offence occurs only if someone seeks to change a person’s identity through abusive conversion practices that result in harm.” He added that “a religious leader teaching their faith’s views on LGBT+ matters should not be affected by this draft bill,” a point that bears on fairness in how the law is described (Proverbs 18:17). He also said the Government was “very clear about sending a message that LGBT+ people deserve to be safe from harm.”

Source: Read the original report