(CNS): An Anglican bishop has pointed out that nothing bad happened in the UK after the introduction of same-sex marriage two years ago and that the Church of England is slowly accepting the concept. Delivering a keynote speech at the ‘Queering Paradigms’ conference on Sunday evening, the Rt Rev Alan Wilson used the Bible and the teachings of Christ to challenge the discrimination and fears held by many Christians about same-sex unions. He said that with around 1.4 billion people in the world now having access to gay marriage, the “toothpaste wasn’t going back in the tube”.

Rev. Wilson said it was merely a matter of time before the controversy surrounding gay and transgender unions would turn to acceptance everywhere, even in his church.

The bishop was introduced by Bee Scherer, professor of religious studies and ethics at Canterbury Christ Church University, who is the founder of the conference, which is now in its seventh year. Speaking about the concept of ‘queer theory’, an academic area challenging traditional concepts of binary genders and other ideas around sexuality, he described it as a daring and rebellious form of thinking about who we are and assumptions about fixed gender.

Although the conference was an academic gathering, Wilson delivered a speech that went to the heart of prejudices surrounding same-sex unions. He challenged the idea that the church has to be against same-sex unions and pointed out that Jesus himself challenged many norms of the time, even the concept of family, which many believe is fundamental to Christianity.

Given the lack of reference in the Bible to same-sex relationships and none at all about women, he also suggested that the concept of a patriarchal family had more to do with culture and society than Christianity and maintained that prejudiced viewpoints had nothing to do with God.

“The whole idea that gender binary is part of Judaeo-Christian tradition is rubbish,” the Bishop said and pointed to the multiple challenges in the old testament and other Jewish religious texts to what people today think of as the normal family, from the story of Tamar to Solomon’s hundreds of wives.

He said that Jesus challenged the concept of family and that, historically, many things in the Bible were misinterpreted, pointing out the contradictions and hypocrisy surrounding what fundamentalists see as abominations. While Leviticus may condemn a man having sex with a man as he would with a woman, it also condemns the marriage to a deceased wife’s sister, which was until 1907 illegal. But, he said, no one in the church today gets worked up over the fact that a man can now lawfully marry his brother’s wife.

Wilson said that people who believe Christianity upholds the patriarchal family “don’t know the first thing about Jesus”, whom he described as a subversive who “deconstructs the family”.

Speaking at length about how nothing bad had happened in the UK after the introduction of same-sex marriage, he pointed to the increase in marriage across the board and noted that the highest number of gay unions were among women, not men. The birth rate had increased rather than fallen in recent years, he said, and, despite claims by some people that God was punishing the UK for legalising same-sex partnerships with floods, this did not seem to be the case.

The bishop told the audience he had decided to test the theory that God was using natural disasters, in particular floods, to tell us how we should live. He took a look at the places in Europe that have not suffered any such natural disasters because, if the punishment theory was right, they would be an indicator of the ideal community and how we should all be living.

He found that one of the few places that had never been cursed with such unfortunate natural disasters was, of all places, Ibiza, a Spanish island in the Mediterranean known for its hedonistic, booze-fueled party culture, heavy drug taking and promiscuity.

The bishop also used statistics and survey results to show the decline in opposition in the UK and the US to same-sex unions. He said the pattern was clear that as the law is passed, resistance fades, even among church congregations. He pointed out that the last areas of resistance tend to be among the over 55’s, making it apparent it is all a matter of time.

Although the conference attracted some local guests, it was mostly academics who took part. Despite a police presence as a result of concerns that there may be demonstrations, there were no disturbances at all over the two days of the conference.

However, there were no leaders from any of Cayman’s religious organisations in attendance to hear some of the reasoned arguments and well-researched presentations made by the numerous presenters from home and abroad.