Monday 19 July 2010 20.00hrs
The
Greenbelt
arts festival, 'rooted within a Christian tradition which is world-affirming, politically and culturally engaged, ... that embraces instead of excludes,' has invited a supporter of under-age sex and homosexual 'cruising' to speak this year.
Peter Tatchell, who contributed to the campaigning paedophile book Betrayal Of Youth, published in 1986 and edited by a Paedophile Information Exchange committee-member, will join a line-up which includes pro-abortion ex-MP Clare Short and Leftist American theologian Stanley Hauerwaus at Cheltenham racecourse over August bank-holiday.
CHILDREN HAVE 'A RIGHT TO HAVE SEX'
Last year, the heretical homosexual bishop from
New Hampshire,
Gene Robinson, took the stage at
Greenbelt
. But inviting someone who believes that a child has the right to a sex life is a rather more dramatic step down the ladder which leads to total depravity.
Betrayal Of Youth was part of a campaign to abolish all ages of consent, destroy the responsibilities of parents for their children, deny any ill-effects on children of interference by paedophiles, and withal to make it easier for paedophiles to gain sexual access to children.
One of Tatchell's co-contributors, 'out' paedophile Roger Moody, had earlier had the brilliant idea of switching the argument away from the rights of adults to have sex with children, towards the rights of children to have sex with adults, or with whoever or whatever they wanted. He wrote: 'the only people who have the right to kid's rights - are the kids themselves.' So at a stroke, paedophiles were talking the language of The Rights Of The Child.
Unlike many of his co-contributors Peter Tatchell is not a paedophile, but his article, 'Questioning Ages of Majority and Ages of Consent', certainly served their purpose. In it he said: 'In a fully democratic and egalitarian society, there can be no question of adults usurping the rights of young people by keeping them in a state of ignorance, fear and guilt, or by resort to arbitrary and autocratic laws which deny them responsibility for decisions affecting their lives.'
14-YEAR-OLD LEE 'LIKES MEN IN THEIR 20s OR 30s'
Even today, on his website, Peter Tatchell argues for a sexual consent law which accommodates the requirements of a fourteen-year-old boy he calls Lee who has been 'having sex with boys since the age of eight and with men since he was 12.' Lee says he 'likes men in their 20s or 30s. They are more experienced and serious.'
Tatchell comments: 'The age of consent laws don't make it easy for Lee to have a stable gay relationship.' According to Lee, and Tatchell does not bat an eyelid at this: 'The law is stupid. If I know what I'm doing and I'm not harming anyone else, I should be allowed to have sex with who I want.'
It rather goes without saying that this is not in accordance with the Biblical witness. It is also fairly certain that parents, even those irresponsible enough to take their children to
Greenbelt
in the first place, do not want to drive back from
Cheltenham
only to hear their twelve-year-old son or daughter claim they have a right to a gay sex life.
The most wishy-washy liberal Christian parents probably do not want their adolescent children looking up Peter Tatchell on the internet when they arrive home and telling them not to usurp their rights to decide what they want for their lives or where they wish to go cruising for anonymous sex. As the
American
College
of Paediatricians has pointed out, introducing teenagers to the idea that they might be homosexual is detrimental, wrongly affirming feelings they would otherwise grow out of.
GREENBELT IS 'INCLUSIVE'
Greenbelt
says it is 'inclusive', which means 'accepting of all, regardless of ethnicity, gender, sexuality, background or belief.' The key words in that disingenuous statement are 'sexuality' and 'belief'. What Christian event would not be open regardless of ethnicity? What family event, as this is, would not welcome both men and women of whatever background? But 'sexuality' and 'belief'? Does that 'all' accept and embrace the sexuality and beliefs of 14-year-old Lee and his 30-year-old boyfriend?
A planet-hugging 'global justice' atmosphere pervades at
Greenbelt
, according to reports. This year,
Greenbelt
has a 'new eco-spirituality worship venue'. Greenbelt's partners are Christian Aid and the Methodist Church. For both of those, salvation is worked out by buying Fairtrade coffee and the UK Government is judged solely by how much taxpayers' money it gives in overseas aid. How the money is spent is largely immaterial. The assuaging of comfortable western consciences is all that matters. With their long-range binoculars,
Greenbelt
and its partners ignore their own land, where culturally every day is just a bit more secularist, sexualised, crass and brutal than the one before, to agonise over conditions in the Gaza Strip.
'NOTHING WRONG' WITH ANONYMOUS CASUAL SEX
When Anglican Mainstream's Lisa Nolland pointed out to
Greenbelt
that Peter Tatchell sees nothing wrong with anonymous casual sex like homosexual 'cruising', she received this response: 'Every year
Greenbelt
hosts speakers with varying and sometimes contrasting views on a whole range of subjects.' No, it doesn't. It only invites those of a liberal, socialist, pacifist, grindingly politically-correct disposition. Dissenting, radical, Biblical, Christ-centred voices are collectively persona non-grata.
But have they gone too far with Tatchell? His profile on the Greenbelt website has been watered down by a worried management. It started off a couple of months ago by calling him 'a militant queer rights campaigner.' When Mainstream started asking questions, this was sanitised to 'best known as a controversial campaigner on issues of sexual freedom and human rights.' On further reflection, the new Greenbelt Festival Director, Gawain Hewitt, decided Tatchell was merely 'campaigning for human rights, democracy and global justice ... driven by a love for humankind.' Yes, he is still 'campaigning to complete the struggle for gay and lesbian equality in the
UK
', but now Peter 'also works in solidarity with human rights activists in many other countries'.
HUMAN RIGHTS 'R'
US
So human rights is Peter Tatchell's forte. That is very
Greenbelt
. Even completing the struggle for gay and lesbian equality to the extent of forcing Christians to shut up and stop criticising them may well accord with
Greenbelt
philosophy. But viewing human rights to include those of fourteen-year-old boys to have sex with adult men? For some reason,
Greenbelt
haven't yet owned up to that aspect of their guest's profile.
PRAY: That Christians start forming their opinions on the word of God which is the Bible rather than on fashionable liberal trends. Pray that the Body of Christ will start acting worthy of His name. Pray that we stop being one-dimensional and start witnessing for the whole of the Gospel, politically-incorrect though it may be in
Britain
today. Pray that
Greenbelt
will withdraw their invitation to Peter Tatchell.
WRITE: To the Festival Director, Gawain Hewitt at:
Greenbelt
Festival, All Hallows on the Wall, 83
London
Wall,
LONDON
,
EC2M 5ND
. You can email info@greenbelt.org.uk or phone: 020 7374 2760 or 020 7374 2755.
