Liinamaria Roos and Toni Fagerholm, pastors in the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland, say they will be disregarding the recent decision of the Finnish branch's synod that says the church will not officiate same-sex marriage rites. Both of the Helsinki clerics say they will begin marrying homosexual partners next March, when the new marriage act takes effect.
In the News
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September 3rd, 2016
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September 3rd, 2016
A few weeks before my son Wil was due, I was sitting at my computer working when I suddenly had the strangest feeling. Out of nowhere, I thought: there’s something about this child that’s going to make him different from our other children. I put it out of my mind. Then, closer to the birth, I had a similar experience and this time the thought I had was that our new baby would have Down’s syndrome.
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September 3rd, 2016
Sir Michael Wilshaw said some councils are “getting in the way” of Ofsted’s attempts to stop pupils studying at unregistered schools.
It is believed there are up to 160 illegal schools currently operating.
Sir Michael said: “Some of our lawyers are saying that our cases are very robust.
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September 3rd, 2016
When Patricia Mendez miscarried in March 2015, she says police and detectives were called into the hospital ward to watch as she writhed in pain and expelled the dead, 20-week fetus.
"I was naked, with just the robe they give you, and I had all of them around as I miscarried," the 21-year-old recalled. "I was in a lot of pain, but nobody did anything. They just said, 'Confess, you have committed the worst sin in the world.'"
Eighteen of Mexico's 32 states have passed so-called right-to-life measures that have drawn criticism from women's rights activists, all in response to a 2008 law legalizing abortion in Mexico City. The legislation ranges from constitutional changes that outline general principles on protecting life from inception to a law in Veracruz state, where Mendez miscarried, that calls for unspecified "educational measures" for women who abort.
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September 2nd, 2016
"Sensationalist" reports cause Christians to think they are not free to proselytise, according to a new resource that urges the public sharing of faith.
Speak Up was launched by the Evangelical Alliance (EA) and the Lawyers Christians Fellowship (LCF) on Friday and aims to persuade Christians they have the law on their side when it comes to sharing their faith in public. The guide on what the law says and how to share your faith in public and at work suggests Christians have "very considerable" freedom to preach the gospel in the UK.
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September 2nd, 2016
The archbishops’ Motion 29 working group on church structures will now work with a consultants’ panel of key stakeholders, as it develops proposals for General Synod/Te Hīnota Whānui 2018.
The Motion 29 working group, whose brief is to find a structure that safeguards this Church’s two integrities on blessing same gender relationships, was to be named on September 1.
This week, however, the archbishops have called for a new panel of consultants to accompany the working group in their task. Since May, say the archbishops, so many Anglican groups have requested a voice on the working group that it had begun to look too weighty to get off the ground.
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September 2nd, 2016
Father Warren Hall said he was notified by phone on Wednesday that Newark Archbishop John Myers, an outspoken conservative, says Hall’s actions are “confusing the faithful" by supporting gay advocacy groups and backing a counselor fired for being in a same-sex marriage.
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September 1st, 2016
Bioethicists want to force doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and other healthcare professionals to participate in euthanasia, abortion, and other actions that violate their consciences or religious beliefs. This wasn’t formerly a serious problem. The values contained in the Hippocratic Oath were consistent with sanctity of life moral conscience.
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September 1st, 2016
More than 2,000 children have been reported to the police over allegations involving indecent images, new figures have revealed.
While some involve illegal child abuse pictures, the majority are thought to be young people sending nude photographs of themselves to boyfriends and girlfriends.
The total number of offences involving indecent images has more than doubled over the past three years, rising from 4,530 in 2013 to 10,818 in 2015.
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August 30th, 2016
Fresh from pledging to block the marriage plebiscite in the Senate, politicans who don’t trust the people to consider the consequences of change have today moved four same-sex marriage bills in the parliament.
It is very disappointing to see political elites denying the people a say while at the same time seeking to use even more of Parliament’s time on this issue.
The first day of the Parliament is not yet over and no less than four same-sex marriage bills have been moved. Are there not more important issues facing the nation?