-
.
- Русский
People’s sexual orientation cannot change, head of Accept LGBTI Nicholas Tryphonos said on Wednesday responding to church’s defence of conversion therapies.
The position of the church is that it loves the homosexual but hates homosexuality, which is contradictory in itself, Tryphonos told Sigma TV.
“In essence it comes to impose what it has imposed for so many years… it continues to hide behind this tradition that has destroyed lives,” the NGO president said.
According to Accept LGBTI, the church has been involved in conversion therapies by referring people for hormone treatments, arranging heterosexual marriages for them, appointing them as priests and cultivating self-hatred in LGBTI people.
“Sexual orientation does not change,” the LGBTI activist noted, referring to the parents who believe they can ‘straighten out’ their children.
MPs are expected to vote on a bill aiming to ban conversion therapies on Thursday.
But the Holy Synod, which Tryphonas said should have put an end to this ‘tradition’ a long time ago, issued a statement on Tuesday urging MPs to not pass the law proposal.
In its statement, the highest authority of the church said that gender is determined by the body’s physiology and is a gift by God. It further added that the relevant law amendment annihilates the right to religious expression which goes against human rights.
Far-right party Elam, which wants to exclude priests from the bill and adjust it to allow the pseudo-treatments upon the individual’s consent, applauded Holy Synod’s statement.
But Accept LGBTI said the church failed to mention all the torture it caused LGBTQ+ individuals and urging it to repent.
“Behind all the hate crimes, homophobic laws and homophobic hatred that prevail worldwide, [THE CHURCH’S] moral teachings have, over the centuries, played a part,” Accept LGBTI said.
The church “is the perpetrator of thousands of murders and torture of LGBTI people” and excuses hate crimes as acts “fighting the devil”, the organisation added.
It then called on the church “to do some self-criticism and reflect on all the harm it has caused to LGBTQ persons. Let it repent for all the blood spilled because of some of its moral teachings,” Accept added.
The annual Cyprus pride march will be held this Saturday in Nicosia.
Contents of this article including associated images are belongs Cyprus Mail
Views & opinions expressed are those of the author and/or Cyprus Mail
Source
