Irish Bakers Get Unexpected Support from Gay Rights Activist
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Two Christian bakers convicted of discrimination charges for refusing to bake a cake promoting gay marriage has received public support from an unexpected source.
They are also saying the case has strengthened their marriage.
A Belfast County Court judge had ruled against Ashers Baking Company for discriminating against gay rights activist Gareth Lee after declining to bake a cake that said "Support Gay Marriage."
Ashers Baking Company's Daniel McArthur and his wife Amy, who are evangelical Christians, refused to make the cake because it conflicted with their religious convictions.
The McArthurs are now heading to the Court of Appeals in Belfast this week in an effort to overturn the ruling that they violated discrimination laws.
Meanwhile, while the couple has received support from Christians around the world, one unexpected source is also coming to their defense.
Peter Tachell, a leading campaigner for gay rights and free speech, condemned the original judge's ruling. He called it a "worrying precedent."
"In my view, it is an infringement of freedom to require businesses to aid the promotion of ideas to which they conscientiously object," he wrote in The Guardian.
Tachell said he works to protect gay rights but also the "freedom of conscience, expression and religion."
He said he supports the couple because Lee's "cake request was not refused because he was gay but because of the message he asked for."
"There is no evidence that his sexuality was the reason the Ashers declined his order," he said.
Not everyone shares Tachell's sentiments. The bakers have been the target of relentless online abuse and hate speech.
However, despite the outcry against their decision to follow their convictions, the couple say the experience has been a blessing for their marriage.
Amy McArthur told The Christian Institute that "God has used this to strengthen our marriage and our relationship with God."
"We have to trust in him and we have seen him answer our prayers time and time again," she said.
The couple stands by their decision to live out their faith in the workplace. They remain optimistic that the appeal court will rule in their favor.
Watch the McArthurs talk about their case with The Christian Institute.
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