Reformation Ireland call for Christians to Awake on Civil Partnerships legislation in the Republic of Ireland
by Mark Fitzpatrick and Raymond Stewart
Dear saints and fellow warriers ,
Greetings in the all glorious name of our Lord Jesus Christ, sole King and only Head of the church !
When our sovereign God, our creator, speaks, His word cannot possibly be irrelevant or outdated.
Our duty surely is to take it as inspired and inerrant, joining with the reformers of old in declaring:
Sola Gratia [Grace Alone]; Sola Fide[Justification by Faith alone] and Sola Scriptura[Scripture alone].
The Psalmist in Psalm 60v4 declared 'Thou hast given a banner to them that fear thee, that it maybe
displayed because of the truth. Selah. As we enter 2010 by God's grace and mercy, it is I humbly
believe our duty to witness towards Holy scripture which God has providentially preserved for us.
The current Civil Partnerships Bill going through Dail Eireann and the Seanad seeks to overturn
the family as we know it throughout Ireland and place into Irish law something which is an
abomination unto the God of Heaven. As far as we know there is no provision for a conscience
clause making allowance for a Christian employer or employee. Columnist, David Quinn writing in
The Irish Catholic has said 'to add insult to injury, the Bill also attacks freedom of conscience and
belief, and here is how it does it. The Bill will change other laws as well. The words 'marital status'
will disappear from certain Acts such as the Equal Status Act and the Employment Equality Act.
They will be replaced with the term 'civil status'. On its own, this shows how closely the Government
equates marriage and civil partnerships.'
It is truly shameful that Evangelical Alliance Ireland have supported the bill. Please see:
Arann Reformed Baptist Church in Dublin have been to the fore in leading a witness in opposition
to the Civil Partnerships train from Belfast to Dublin on 5th December [see attached] and we are
pleased to note that Aontas [Association of Irish Evangelicals] www.aontas.ie is not in support
of the move by EAI. I have received a message of encouragement from the Moderator of the
Presbyterian Church in Ireland, Rev Stafford Carson giving his support to any campaign and it is
good to see that the present superintendant of ICM in Dublin has written a strong letter to his
church newspaper, The Gazette [see attached].
We need footsoldiers as it were now to write or e.mail those Fianna Fail/Fine Gael/Labour or
Independent members of Dail Eireann representing where you live. Individual letters are effective
and as far as we are aware there are no Christians in Dail Eireann but Seymour Crawford [FG]
representing Cavan/Monaghan was reported some years ago by The Irish Times as refusing to
attend political meetings on the Lord's Day.
Will you write to him together with your local TD on this matter at Seymour.Crawford@finegael.ie
Check the Dail website for your own area.
The challenge of Christian witness in our generation or lack of it will doubtless impact upon
future generations in our Irish nation. Will we maintain our liberty and freedom to preach the
gospel unhindered or will political correctness silence churches and individuals in years to come ?
John Calvin in a sermon on Acts chapters 1-7 has stated that 'we see unbelievers as poor lost
sheep. Our Lord has not given us insight into his truth for our advantage alone, but for sharing
with others. Because we see them as madmen casting themselves into hell, we must to the extent
that we can, prevent them from doing so and procure their salvation'
The challenge to be 'salt and light' today, is not an option but a command of our Lord Jesus
Christ. Will we obey it to the glory of our triune God ?
Yours sincerely, in the Gospel
Mark Fitzpatrick
Raymond Stewart