Section 377A outlaws sexual acts between males, making such acts punishable by up to two years in prison. According to AFP, Singapore's Court of Appeal allowed for constitutional challenges to Section 377A in August 2012, striking down a High Court decision blocking a challenge to the law. A trial to determine the constitutionality of Section 377A is set for February 14th, the Star Online reports.
Lawrence Khong founded Faith Community Baptist Church in 1986, according to the church's website. Khong was commissioned as an apostle by Dr. C. Peter Wagner of the International Coalition of Apostles in 2000, indicative of New Apostolic Reformation influences on Khong's ministry. (See www[dot]fcbc[dot]org[dot]sg/about/milestones)
A transcript of Lawrence Khong's speech was posted earlier this week at the Faith Community Baptist Church website. In his statement, Khong painted LGBTQ activism as a "looming threat" to Singapore's families. Using rhetoric remarkably similar to U.S. anti-gay activists, Khong argued that LGBTQ rights advances have allegedly led to "the breakdown of the family" and the disintegration of parental rights worldwide. (See www[dot]fcbc[dot]org[dot]sg/about/news/sp-lawrence-khongs-statement-esm-goh-chok-tongs-visit-tc)
"We affirm that the family unit comprises a man as Father, a woman as Mother, and Children. This is the basic building block of society, a value foundational for a secure future, a premise fundamental to nation-building.Like his American Religious Right counterparts, Khong waxed poetic about "free speech" and "religious liberty" as he urged Singapore's government to demonstrate "moral leadership."
We see a looming threat to this basic building block by homosexual activists seeking to repeal Section 377A of the Penal Code.
Examples from around the world have shown that the repeal of similar laws have led to negative social changes, especially the breakdown of the family as a basic building block and foundation of the society. It takes away the rights of parents over what their children are taught in schools, especially sex education. It attacks religious freedom and eventually denies free speech to those who, because of their moral convictions, uphold a different view from that championed by increasingly aggressive homosexual activists."
"We love our nation. We sincerely pray for and look to the Government to provide moral leadership in preserving this basic building block and foundation of our society. And with that, to robustly protect our constitutional rights to free speech and religious liberty; so as to ensure that social cohesion and religious harmony are maintained in Singapore."Khong failed to explain how decriminalizing consensual sex between men will supposedly corrode family life or prevent people from worshipping freely. His words seem intended to inspire fear in listeners that repealing Section 377A will threaten their freedom, faith, and families. In such a worldview, LGBTQ issues become a zero sum game in which gains for the LGBTQ community must somehow mean losses for Christians. Let's hope Singapore's people understand that this is not the case.
For additional commentary, visit the following links.
Sparrows and Sandcastles: Evangelical Homophobia
Jianlin Chen: Singapore's Culture War Over Section 377A
(Hat tip to Pink News)
"Examples from around the world have shown that the repeal of similar laws have led to negative social changes, especially the breakdown of the family as a basic building block and foundation of the society."
ReplyDeleteNothing could be a bolder lie. I would love to see someone publicly demand to his face that he produce evidence in support of that lie. He wouldn't be able to produce a thing.
Paul -- It's blatantly untrue. I have yet to see evidence that advances in LGBTQ rights have any negative impact on families. Quite the opposite; LGBTQ advances bring about a lot of good things.
DeleteThese people always talk of "looming threats" and society breakdown, as Paul stated above. I have yet to hear one credible example of a threat or society breakdown though. Probably because there are none...the only threat homosexuality is to religious dogma. It is another example of where the bible got something wrong...the bible portrays it as an abomination and unnatural act. However, we now know that both of those characterizations are incorrect.
ReplyDelete"Khong failed to explain how decriminalizing consensual sex between men will supposedly corrode family life or prevent people from worshipping freely."
ReplyDeleteTypical. People like him rarely do. On those rare occasions when they do explain they end up sounding crazy--like "a woman's body shuts down" when she's raped, etc.