Gays and lesbians who want to embrace the institute of marriage
should be welcomed by the church, according to the Dean of London's
St.Paul's cathedral.
David Ison, who was appointed as the church's new Dean earlier
this week, said marriage would benefit from same-sex couples who
take the life-long commitment seriously.
He also added that the emphasis should be on Christian marriage,
rather than gay or straight marriage.
Speaking to The Times, he said: "We need to take seriously
people's desire for partnership and make sure that the virtues that
you see in married relationships are available to people who
are
gay.
"You can regard two Christian gay people as wanting to have the
virtues of Christian marriage," he added.
"For Christian gay people to model that kind of faithfulness, in
a culture which, historically, has often been about promiscuity, is
a very good thing to do.
"[Marriage is] the best pattern for how to flourish if you're
going to be in a relationship ... whether you're gay or
straight.""
The liberal religious figure, who was appointed by the Queen
earlier this week, also extended his opinions to same-sex couples
adopting children.
Photo from Wikipedia, courtesy of Robert Bauer.
