Churches oppose Ugandan Anti-gay bill

There has been a tremendous debate underway in Uganda to strengthen sodomy laws, ban same sex marriages, and generally to repress homosexual behavior by the enactment of harsh punishments including life in prison and death for offenses against the law.

In its December 17 Christmas message, the Uganda Joint Christian Council, a coalition of the country’s Anglican, Orthodox and Roman Catholic Churches, said that while its individual member churches had not yet issued formal statements on the proposed bill, all were opposed to the harsh penalties proposed for the suppression of vice.

The Churches agree that homosexual activity is biblically unacceptable, but "The “problem of homosexuality cannot be addressed by the law alone,” the churches noted, adding that Uganda’s Christian Churches were “concerned about the spiritual wellbeing of all members of the human family, including those who find themselves trapped in questionable lifestyles such as gays and lesbians.”
Coercion was not the solution, the churches concluded, appealing to “all parties to seek sustainable solutions to this problem. This would, among other things, involve teaching, mentoring, counseling and rehabilitation of all victims who are within reach,” the Uganda Joint Christian Council said.