Australia: Archbishop Supports Ecumenical 'Creed on Human Sexuality'
In an interview with CatholicWeekly.com.au on 6 May, he said that his signature was intended to demonstrate ecumenical support.
"From a Catholic perspective, I felt that we could contribute a great deal because we have been able to articulate much of this material through magisterial teaching and catechism, and we can help with terminology", he said.
Monsignor Porteous sums up his own approach: "For best results, follow the Maker's instructions." The 200-word statement "Creed" uses positive terms to affirm Christian truths:
"We believe God blesses sexual intimacy solely between a man and a woman within the holy covenant of marriage, a life-giving mystery that reflects Christ’s love for his church."
Or: "We believe that God calls husbands and wives to be fruitful and multiply; that every life is sacred; and that children are precious to God and must be protected from sexualisation."
The initiative’s website explains: "Every era has its particular heresies. In the 21st century, heresies abound in the area of human sexuality. The Church has not been immune to these errors. We believe that the time has come for a new creed that affirms the Church's timeless teachings regarding sexual integrity and articulates God's glorious design for sex and marriage, as revealed in Holy Scripture."
So far, nearly 6,000 people have signed the internet statement.
In 2015, Archbishop Porteous was forced to defend himself before Tasmania’s 'Anti-Discrimination' Commission over allegations of 'homophobia' [a propaganda term] in his booklet Don’t Mess with Marriage. It took six months of negotiation before the complaint was withdrawn.
Picture: Julian Porteous © wikicommons CC BY-SA, #newsSkhjbgafuq