by Amy Butler

Prime Minister John Howard bought into the debate on homosexuality last month when he stated that traditional marriage was necessary for the ‘survival of the species’.

Mr Howard’s comments placed him with the Vatican and US President Bush in opposing state support for same-sex unions.

“Traditional marriage is one of the bedrock institutions of our society and I don’t want anything to occur that weakens it,” he said. “Marriage, as we understand it in our society, is about children, having children, raising them, providing for the survival of the species.”

Mr Howard’s comments were widely criticised by gay and lesbian groups as discriminatory. But the newly elected President of the NSW Council of Churches and senior minister at St Andrew’s Cathedral, the Rev Chris Moroney, welcomed Mr Howard’s comments.

“This statement from our Prime Minister shows that he is supportive of the traditional views of marriage and the family that are the basis on which our society has been built and which guarantee its survival.

“It is encouraging for the churches to see this unambiguous stand from the political leaders of this nation. We note that Deputy PM, John Anderson, [has] made similar comments,” Mr Moroney said.

Dr Andrew Cameron, Deputy Chairman of the diocesan Social Issues Executive also welcomed Mr Howard’s support for marriage as the best environment for the nurture of children. “These are interesting comments which require further exploration. They are not necessarily susceptible to criticisms of those who put up technology as the answer to the survival of our species,” Dr Cameron said.

“It’s one thing to imagine tinkering with marriage and the raising of children. It’s quite another thing to live the experiment. Christians do positively discriminate for hetero-sexual marriage, as the Bible says it ‘should be honoured by all’. “Whether or not we have it for ourselves, it deserves our respect, nurture and support. It’s not up for redefinition by anyone who wants something like it.”