Christian Sex Therapists

For me, the strangest thing about the case of Gary McFarlane isn't the fact that he lost his appeal at the Employment Appeal Tribunal. According to 'Church Times'...

'Mr McFarlane, a solicitor based in Bristol, used to work for the Avon branch of Relate, the relationship-counselling service. In September 2007, Mr McFarlane asked to be exempted from working with same-sex couples where sexual issues were involved, such as offering cognitive sexual-technique coun­selling, as he believes that the Bible teaches him that same-sex practice is sinful.'

Of course, were it a Heavenly court, Mr McFarlane would get his job back, since, indeed the practice of homosexuality is a grave sin and he's under no obligation as far as God is concerned to co-operate in the sin of another.

It is unjust that he lost his job on grounds of discrimination and that he was unable to practise his religion and his work as a relationship counsellor (though, were he giving sex advice to unmarried couples, would that too not be against central tenets of Christianity?) by being discriminated against so harshly.

Like doctors who don't like killing babies, there should be an exemption for people whose religious faith means they cannot, in conscience, assist in the sexual life of practising homosexuals, since while all Christians are called to bear witness to the dignity of each human being, Christians (or indeed Muslims/Jews and other people of faith) shouldn't be forced acquiesce in the sin of another, if, indeed, they do not want to. A Christian relationship adviser on meeting a homosexual couple, would, surely, advise chastity.

However, as a total aside, how on earth is a man who we presume is a heterosexual to be expected to give 'cognitive sexual technique counselling' to homosexuals?  If 'good sex' is what this therapy was about, then how's a straight guy, of any faith or none, going to help a couple of gay guys achieve it? Gay sex is still something of a minority sport, so to speak. Would he have even had 'training' in this? Aside from the moral issues involved for him on a personal basis, man on man action is hardly going to be his speciality. Likewise, how would a woman relationship counsellor react to being asked how to 'pep up' the bed life of two homosexual men? I don't know. It all seems quite bizarre.

In fact, it is a bit much to ask any heterosexual man to give advice on homosexual sex and how to do it well, since homosexual sex is, still, something of a sexual sub-culture in the UK, even though the media often like to portray that 50% of the population of the UK is doing it. Sorry to sound crude, but, basically, isn't it a little insulting (and rather pointless) to ask a heterosexual man how to, say, give good 'head' to another man?

Indeed, if a 'straight' couple wanted advice on how to engage in S&M practices, how would a relationship counsellor advice them? Surely, this homosexual couple should have asked someone with either a history of working with gay couples, or indeed, another homosexual for this kind of sex therapy?

Instead, they got put with the heterosexual Christian guy who probably thinks that the couple are already bound for eternal damnation, thirty seconds after having set his eyes on them...What homosexual couple really think that a straight, Christian man is really going to be able to help them 'sort out' their ailing sex life? It all makes me think that Mr McFarlane was stitched up good and proper.

Just a thought.