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Bishop threatens to evict Catholic adoption agency
Bishop O'Donoghue to evict adoption agency
An adoption agency may be removed from church property over gay rights laws
"The decision of the trustees [to comply with SORs] has been taken after extensive consultation, legal advice and a great deal of prayer and discernment "
An adoption agency has been threatened with eviction from church property because of its agreement with the Sexual Orientation Regulations.
Patrick O'Donoghue, Bishop of Lancaster, issued the Catholic Caring Services (CSS) with the warning after trustees stated that they intended to comply with the regulations by allowing same-sex parents to adopt.
The Sexual Orientation Regulations stipulate that businesses must not discriminate against homosexuality, and were criticised by religious groups when introduced in 2007.
The bishop notified the CSS of his intention to sue for money left to the agency in Catholic wills if their statement was not retracted within a week. The CSS could also lose its link with the Lancaster diocese.
In a letter to the agency O'Donoghue said:
"I find it unthinkable, indeed heart-breaking, that Catholic Caring Services, so linked to the Catholic Church since its inception, would abandon its position and capitulate to recent same-sex adoption legislation.
"As your bishop I cannot give permission to an agency of the Catholic Church to act in opposition to her teaching and her long and rich experience of the placement of children with adoptive parents."
He continued to state that he did not support same-sex partnerships, and that children were better provided for in the care of a heterosexual married couple. This is not the first time that the Lancaster bishop's views have been publicly voiced; in August he condemned the Bishops' Conference of England and Wales for its stance on same-sex relationships.
Jim Cullen, chief executive of CCS, said:
"The decision of the trustees [to comply with SORs] has been taken after extensive consultation, legal advice and a great deal of prayer and discernment.
"We will remain a Catholic charity, operating the same services, with the same staff, same values and same ethos.
"We are confident that this course of action is the only transparent and certain way to preserve our services for some of society's most vulnerable children and adults."
