A former teacher and Christian campaigner made a bizarre analogy to explain why he has little sympathy for kids who realize they are gay whilst attending an evangelical school.
There’s currently a big political controversy going on in Australia around what faith schools can and can’t do, particularly concerning how they treat LGBTQ students.
The topic has made headlines in recent days after it emerged one particular college demanded parents sign a form promising that their kids would not be gay or trans if attending the institution.
One of those on the side of evangelical schools is former teacher and Christian campaigner Greg Bondar, NSW director of FamilyVoice Australia.
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In an interview with Australia’s ABC network today, Bondar was asked about kids who realize they are gay only after enrolling at a school. Should they be excluded?
“No [but] the point is it’s like me buying a house under the flight path, it’s pointless me arguing two years late that there’s too much noise, I chose to do that.”
Christian educator and Family Voice Australia spokesman Greg Bondar just told @PatsKarvelas on @RNBreakfast that sending a gay student to Christian school like #Citipointe (& complaining about their ‘contract’) is like buying a house on the flight path & complaining about noise.
— Louise Milligan (@Milliganreports) February 3, 2022
Interviewer Patricia Karvelas pointed out it’s usually parents who decide upon a school, not the child. Bondar went on to say you show “every compassion to that child”, but the kid must abide by the school’s rules: “It’s the difference between what you claim to be and what you practice.”
Bondar went on to shoot down numerous studies that have found LGBTQ kids face greater mental health challenges during their school years than their heterosexual peers, and are more likely to consider suicide.
“That research is skewed and it’s meant to give the results that they want,” he claimed.
“If a person is gay, fine, but don’t start expressing your sexuality or gender identity that is in conflict with the school’s ethos.”
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In 2018, the government of Prime Minister Scott Morrison pledged to outlaw religious discrimination. However, since then, there has been a battle between religious groups and legislators to include exemptions. This includes allowing schools to prioritize the hiring of staff with the beliefs and to exclude students who don’t follow the school’s faith-based rules: this includes gay and trans kids.
The issue came into sharp focus this week when it emerged that Citipointe Christian College, a Pentecostal school in Brisbane, demanded parents to sign an enrolment contract denouncing homosexuality and promising students would be banned from identifying as gay or transgender.
The proposed Australian anti-discrimination legislation will be debated on February 8.
Mister P
Denying a kid an education doesn’t sound very Christian.
I_am_that_guy
news just in … some Christians are not very good at following Christian virtues.
johncp56
There is nothing good about the cults of religions, tax dodging A holes shameless hate in sheep’s clothing
Cato
“In 2018, the government of Prime Minister Scott Morrison pledged to outlaw religious discrimination.”
Somehow I doubt that he meant outlawing discrimination by religious organizations, but wouldn’t that be nice?
johncp56
It is so maddening , how they hate but wants the freedom to hate more, that is why it is the separation of state and Church!!!! period!! as it should be no religion running the country, and they can start paying their share of taxes!!!
Bosch
Enrolling a gay kid in faith school is like sending your black daughter to KKK Summer Kamp.
justwannaleaveonecomment
The article title is misleadingly sound. No shit it’s a good idea to not enroll a child in a faith school, and for the ones that are enrolled, pull them out after they come out because if you don’t they will not develop in a healthy environment. Reading beyond the headline, the guy is very backwards and his analogy doesn’t work in the context because the question was regarding children who don’t realize their sexuality until they’re already in school rather than before they enroll. I just didn’t appreciate the misleadingly sound article title.
Music908
Sometimes people don’t realize their own sexuality until they are almost 20 years old. I know that might sound late to some people, but in a world that sends advertising that is geared towards heterosexuality it isn’t necessarily easy to realize that you’re not feeling exactly the same way that the majority of others are feeling about your own choices unless you blossom at an early age, and have supportive parents. So, schools need to support ALL sexualities. In my opinion, schools need to stop discriminating against LGBTQIA+ students, whether they’re ‘Christian’ schools, or not.
Jaquelope
It always makes me shake my head at all of these self-professing “Christians”, who focus more on what was written in the Old Testament, than in what the One who they are supposedly following did, and told His followers to do. I’m very sure that He is not pleased, and will tell them all to “Get thee hence! I never knew you!”
mudgeguy
If you want to see who the Australian Prime Minister really is, just search google images for “scott morrison hillsong church” and you’ll see the side of him that he tries to hide. He is totally up for letting religious institutions discriminate against LGBT folk. When your own PM waves his hands in the air screaming ” yes jeebus! I’m a believer” then you know who you’re stuck with. He represents the Liberal Party who currently hold federal power. Don’t be confused by the name, the Liberal Party are in fact hard core conservatives like US republicans.
MrMichaelJ
If Christ was alive today right-wing Christians would nail him to the cross quicker than the Romans and Jews ever could.
johncp56
Yes he has long hair lol and great abs,