Waters' wife, Joanna, was shocked when the funeral director and his assistant visited her asking how she wanted to dispose of his body. Gay activists told a local undertaker that Waters was dead and asked for his funeral to be arranged. Waters received death threats from LGBTQ+ hate groups in Ely, and locals even attempted to drive the pastor and his family out of the countrified cathedral town. "Indeed, some members of society may share that view for non-religious reasons or, indeed, share that view because they have other religious beliefs," King added. Isle of Ely Primary School, CambridgeshireĮven though not all Christians hold the same view on the sinfulness of homosexual acts, the belief that "sexual relationships are only appropriate within a heterosexual marriage" is a biblical tenet covered by the "religion or belief" protected characteristic within the Equality Act 2010, she ruled. "The issue is that someone may well take offense at anything, but the question is whether that is reasonable in all the circumstances," King emphasized. Similarly, Waters records his sermons and uploads them on his church's website, and there may well be content in those sermons listeners would find offensive, leading to a breach in the policy of the school, the judge observed.
The judge also explained that it is legitimate for preachers to use social media to "spread the word" even though it "puts the word in the public forum" where nonbelievers can access the messages. The same could be said about aspects of Christianity that conflict with other religions. Judge King also ruled that Waters' tweet was not homophobic, noting that the headteacher gave "significant weight to the views of those that complained rather than looking objectively at what the claimant had written."
We must never stand back and risk harm to the children of today. This is especially true when it comes to children's physical, emotional, mental and spiritual safety. It is crucial that I and other Christians continue to stand firmly on the truth of Scripture and live as salt and light in our society. However, it became clear that my employer felt they had the right to decide the limits of the freedom of speech and expression of Christians, even outside of the workplace, which meant I was left with no other remedy but the law court. I was sorry to find that it became necessary to take this to law, as I had no desire to sue the school. Waters told Church Militant that "the key issue" for him was his employer's insistence that "their internal policies could be applied to my legitimate activities as a Christian in the public square, and, therefore, they felt they had a right to decide what I should and should not have legitimately said, if another individual were to find my words offensive." "Evangelical Christian ministers will have views not necessarily shared by everyone in society, but that is part of their duty as a Christian minister - to preach those beliefs," King ruled in a 58-page judgment published April 21. Helen Davies, then headteacher of the Isle of Ely Primary School (which employed the pastor as a caretaker), issued Waters a final warning for bringing the school into disrepute, leading to Waters' resignation. Thomas Tobin of Providence, Rhode Island, explaining how LGBTQ+ Pride displays "promote a culture and encourage activities that are contrary to Christian faith and morals" and "are especially harmful for children." Waters was terrorized by LGBTQ+ activists after he reminded Christians not to "support or attend LGBTQ+ 'Pride Month' events held in June," Church Militant reported in December 2019. "Beliefs which are offensive, shocking or even disturbing to others can still be protected," Judge Sarah King ruled in a judgment in favor of Keith Waters, then pastor of New Connexions Church in Ely, Cambridgeshire. Judge Sarah King vindicates Pastor Keith Waters Catholic bishop warning against gay pride events. You are not signed in as a Premium user we rely on Premium users to support our news reporting.ĬAMBRIDGE, England ( ) - A British court has vindicated an evangelical pastor who was forced out of his secular job after he shared a tweet from a U.S.