Every now and then as a gay man I come across articles, magazines, and other publications that are rather full of hatred for those who are gay. A friend of mine, Mandy, was browsing in the Faith Mission Bookshop in Belfast recently, during LGBT History Month, and picked up the Chick Publications Tract, Doom Town. She was completely shocked and outraged by the content of this tract.

As can be seen quite clearly, the publications suggests that homosexuals are worthy of death.

This prompted Mandy to contact the Equality Commission and the Police Service of Northern Ireland. In addition, she forwarded a letter to the email of the bookshop concerned. I am very pleased that she did, because the response is very positive.

Faith Mission Bookshops explained what steps they have taken.

Our management were made aware of this immediately after your email came through – they responded by asking our Belfast shop to remove the publication immediately. We have also now taken steps to ensure that none of our other shops have this product or any other publications by “chick.”

We would like to take the opportunity to apologise for the offence caused…

Let it be said that Faith Mission Bookshops cannot and will not defend this literature on any grounds whatsoever – it is offensive and dangerous!

Once again we are incredibly sorry that this situation has occurred and please be assured that we are taking it very seriously.

from email correspondence from Alastair Simpson,
FM Bookshops online

Thank you to those in Faith Mission Bookshops who have taken this step. Let’s hope and pray that the Christian message of love will be spread throughout the world, and not the message of hate which seems to pervade many so-called Christian sects.

We should remember what St Paul writes in his first letter to the Corinthians:

So these three things continue for ever: faith, hope and love. And the greatest of these is love.

1 Cor. 13.13 New Century Version

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