A bakery owner in Northern Ireland must continue his wait to see if the government will force him to violate his faith.
Last year Daniel McArthur, manager of Ashers Bakery, refused to fulfill an order for a cake with a message promoting same-sex “marriage,” citing his closely held religious beliefs. The homosexuals involved filed a complaint and a lower court found McArthur guilty of discrimination, sending the case to a higher court on appeal.
McArthur spoke to the press before the hearing got under way.
“Ashers does not discriminate against anyone,” he shared. “We took issue with the message on the cake and not the customer – and as a family we believe we should retain the freedom to decline business that would force us to promote a cause with which we disagree.
“As Christians we can’t simply switch off our faith when we enter the workplace on a Monday morning,” McArthur continued. “To be a Christian at all is to strive to live for Christ in every corner of our lives.”
Only a few minutes into the hearing, it was adjourned. Simon Calvert of The Christian Institute explains that constitutional issues may be at play in the case.
“… The attorney general for Northern Ireland has sought to intervene in the legal action involving the McArthurs,” Calvert says. “He thinks there are some questions to be raised about the validity of the laws that were used against them. So we’ll have to wait and see the substance of his arguments.”
Calvert adds that in his eyes, the adjournment reflects “the importance of the issues at stake.”
The McArthurs now will have to wait until May 9 for a four-day hearing on the case.
Christian Today reported last week that a prominent campaigner for homosexual rights had come to the defense of the McArthurs, saying: “Much as I wish to defend the gay community, I also want to defend freedom of conscience, expression, and religion.”
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Copyright American Family News. Reprinted with permission.
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