A question of freedom as the Pope speaks out over equality

The 82-year-old Pontiff said that the proposed Equality Bill, which could end the right of the Church to ban gay people from senior

positions, would put "unjust" restrictions on the freedom of religious communities to act in accordance with their beliefs.

Speaking in Rome to a gathering of Catholic bishops from England and Wales, he said: "Your country is well-known for its firm commitment to equality of opportunity for all members of society. Yet, as you have rightly pointed out, the effect of some of the legislation designed to achieve this goal has been to impose unjust limitations on the freedom of religious communities to act in accordance with their beliefs."

Religion and politics aren't the most comfortable of bedfellows and

it's perhaps not surprising that this thorny issue has once again

raised its head above the pulpit. Last week, the Government was

defeated in the House of Lords after churches voiced concerns that the provisions of the Equality Bill could leave them open to legal challenges if they refused to employ gay and lesbians who were sexually active.

However, the Pope's remarks and his call to bishops in England and Wales to oppose the Bill have led to a backlash. The British Humanist Association condemned his "uninformed and homophobic" comments, while Labour MEP Stephen Hughes said he was appalled by the Pope's attitude adding: "Religious leaders should be trying to eradicate inequality, not perpetuate it." There are, though, genuine concerns among some religious communities that their freedom to pursue their own faith is being impinged upon.

Speaking on the BBC Radio 4 Today programme, Archbishop Vincent

Nichols, head of the Catholic Church in England and Wales, said: "I think (the Pope's) words will find an echo in many in our country who are uneasy that perhaps one of the unintended consequences of recent legislation is to drive religious belief and practice into the sphere of the private only."

John Grady, a spokesman for the Leeds Diocese, believes the country is being driven by a "secularist agenda" that has ramifications for many Christians, whether they are Catholic or not. "Most of the nominations are troubled by certain aspects of the Equality Bill and what we're seeing is a clash between secular society and Christian society. We are founded on Christian principles, they govern our laws and customs, that is our whole raison d'etre, but these are being eroded," he says.

"If it curtails the freedom of others, if it prevents Christians being Christians then that becomes a problem and that's what people are worried about. All the Pope is saying is we have to stand firm and state our principles, this is us and this is what we stand for. We fully understand that people have other ways of ordering their lives, but at the same time we don't want someone saying you can't stand for that, you can't have those principles, and this is where the crunch comes."

The whole issue has led to a war of words and polarised opinions. One side views the debate as a matter of religious freedom, while the other sees it as an attempt by religious institutions to defend discrimination and demand the right to be above the law.

The Rev Sharon Ferguson, chief executive of the Lesbian and Gay Christian Movement (LGCM), claims it's not a question of people's beliefs being challenged. "There should not be any problem whatsoever with any faith-based organisation employing gay or lesbian people. It isn't religious beliefs that are being undermined, what's being

undermined is the opportunity for people to discriminate which is

unbecoming of the Christian faith."

She criticises the Pope for inflaming the situation. "Christianity is about justice and equality for all people, and it beggars belief that somebody who is supposed to be the representative of God is advocating that followers of Christ should be against a Bill that is about

bringing justice and equality to people – which is what Christ's

message is all about."