Latest update February 12th, 2025 8:40 AM
Jun 15, 2014 News
…sticks to the principles of the Holy Scriptures
As talk on the acceptance of homosexuality gains momentum in Guyana, and as sections of the populace remain spilt over the matter, Pastor Ronald Mc Garrell who has been the latest person to denounce the act says that he remains firm in his statement against the lifestyle.
He says that he holds to the principles of the Holy Scriptures.
Mc Garrell, who has been a Pastor for some 20 years, tendered his resignation from the Guyana Responsible Parenthood Association (GRPA) earlier this week after calls were made for him to step down in light of a statement made by him during a radio talk show recently.
The Pastor suggested during the show ‘Hard Talk’ that gay persons should reside on an island by themselves to spare the multitude from God’s wrath.
The comment has stirred up another huge debate on homosexuality and its place in Guyanese society. Pastor McGarrell of the Family Federation for World Peace explained to Kaieteur News yesterday that it would be against his teachings not be frank on the issue of homosexuality.
He said that the talk show host, who is the founder of the local gay rights movement – SASOD – Society against Sexual Orientation Discrimination, was speaking on gay rights from a legal point of view and was advocating for the laws on buggery and cross dressing to be repealed. The Pastor is of the view that should this happen, “the door would be opened for all kinds of things as is the case in the United States of America”.
He said that when these laws were removed (in America for example), the gays eventually went to the Supreme Court to win the right to marry members of the same sex.
Pastor McGarrell added that he was trying to let persons understand that “their activities have implications for everyone in society, and is so seen in the case of Noah, Sodom and Gomorrah, and in the Book of Leviticus.”
“I am not against any person,” the Pastor charged, “but if it is one thing to bring down the wrath of God it is that. I was coming from a religious perspective and the host was speaking from a legal perspective.
“Why did they call me on the programme if they did not want my honesty and point of view, which was from a religious perspective?” He said as the discussion (talk show) went on, “I said that if the homosexuals are so desirous of living the way they are living, if they really care for the rest of society, spare us the wrath of God, and they can go to another place. In order to put some distance between them and us, I said, they can go to an island; in a light hearted way.
“If they didn’t want our perspective on the issue, then why should we have gone there? To say yes? Just knock down all the laws off the books?” The Pastor said that people must understand the purpose and importance of one’s descendants so when the question of God and children arises there must be answers.
“Everything is designed according to the nature of God, and if God did not want our descendants he would not have created us to make any. It must be recognized that we need our descendants; our eternal happiness is tied up in our descendants,” the Pastor opined.
For years Pastor McGarrell has hosted family enrichment programmes, and he has been at the forefront with those seeking to improve family life in Guyana. Several hundred persons are recipients of family life certificates from Pastor McGarrell’s organization.
He has been accused of being unprofessional and unethical for the statement made.
The topic of persons pursuing “alternative lifestyles” repeatedly comes up in Guyana, while the country and its Administrators are yet to take a definite position on the matter.
Recently, a ruling was made in the High Court pertaining to cross dressing. However, gay rights activists say the ruling is unclear and they will be seeking to appeal the matter.
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