Victory as Scottish church agrees to cancel SA anti-gay preacher’s talk
Angus Buchan
The church that invited homophobic South African preacher Angus Buchan to speak in Scotland has cancelled the event following international condemnation.
The evangelical Hope Church in Tweedbank was set to host Buchan on 22 August at the Volunteer Hall in the town of Galashiels as part of his UK tour, from 21 to 28 August.
Activists mounted a campaign against the visit, leading the venue earlier this week to refuse to allow his talk to go ahead on its premises.
While the church could have tried to find another venue, it has heeded the anger of the LGBT community and has decided to cancel the event completely, reports Kaleidoscot.
Pastor Michael McLeister, of Hope Church at Galashiels, told the site: “For the sake of the gospel, peace and relationships in our community Hope Church have decided not to run this Angus Buchan Event.”
Susan Hart from the group Scottish Borders LGBT Equality thanked the church for its decision.
“We appreciate that they have considered the issues and have taken what we know was a very difficult decision for them to make but which nonetheless acknowledges the importance of reflecting the values of our community here in the Scottish Borders,” she said.
Buchan is set to make appearances in England, Northern Ireland, and the Republic of Ireland and will hold a three-day Mighty Men Conference in North Yorkshire, but these are also under threat.
The preacher is now facing opposition to the other events, with news that Patrick O’Neill, the mayor of Kilkenny in Ireland, has announced that he will sign a petition objecting to Buchan’s talk planned in his town on Wednesday.
Buchan, a Zimbabwe-born farmer and evangelist of Scottish descent who now lives in KwaZulu-Natal, is known for his conservative views on gender roles and his condemnation of homosexuality.
He believes that homosexuality can be “cured” through prayer and that same-sex marriage is sinful. Buchan, who attracts thousands of men to his so-called Mighty Men Conferences, also preaches that men should rule the home and teach their wives to know their place.
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Although he is entitled to his archaic, hateful, narrow-minded and impious opinion, pastor Angus Buchan should not be allowed a platform to voice these profanities in civilised society, so well done Scotland! As an ex-South African, proudly, having made the UK my home all of 25 years ago, I was blissfully unaware of pastor Buchan’s existence until now. Having researched the internet to establish just who this nincompoop really is, I have now discovered that he has no officially recognised academical qualification in the discipline of theology. Shalom Ministries is just some ‘Micky Mouse’ outfit operating under the cloak of religion, which has sadly drawn a following of the feeble-minded. You are a farmer, not an expert in Theology or the Word of God. The fact is, every time we misrepresent our position as children of God, we are damaging His reputation. Fortunately, Jesus forgives even the sin of blasphemy. So pastor Buchan, please rid yourself of this worryingly obvious obsession with the LGBT community, as we can also be sure to receive forgiveness, if, in fact, what we were born to be could be classified as ‘sinful’.
Don’t we as ministers of the Gospel have the right to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ? This is indeed a sad day that a crusade is cancelled because homosexuals believe that a sin to preach the sinful lifestyle of homosexuals. My good Lord have mercy, this is indeed the last days. Homosexuals don’t want to know that their lifestyle is abnormal and an abomination to God. I will continue to preach the truth, even if it means that I am lock up. Homosexuals will never be able to stop the truth. How can homosexuality be normal? We know that the Gospel will go out although the homosexual community tries to stop us. I am praying and trusting God that more homosexuals will come to Christ. May the Lord have mercy on the souls of homosexuals. The pastor who buckled under pressure of homosexuals needs to look to Christ and not be moved by people who clearly have no respect for the Gospel of Christ.
There is a website for the LGBT community to work together to shut him down.