(Worthy News) - A Christian professor in Britain is suing the Methodist Bible college he worked for after being fired for posting on social media that homosexuality is a sin that is “invading the Church,” UK advocacy group Christian Concern reports.
A father of five, 37 year-old Dr Aaron Edwards was employed as a theology lecturer at the Methodist Cliff College in Derbyshire when he was fired for “bringing the college into disrepute‘ on Twitter (now called X)” in March this year.
On 19 February, Edwards had posted: “Homosexuality is invading the Church. Evangelicals no longer see the severity of this b/c they’re busy apologising for their apparently barbaric homophobia, whether or not it’s true. This *is* a ‘Gospel issue’, by the way. If sin is no longer sin, we no longer need a Saviour.”
He was subsequently suspended by Cliff College and, according to Christian Concern, was “threatened with being reported to Prevent [counter-terrorism agency] during an investigation and subsequent hearing.” Edwards has stated the controversy is such he may not find employment in higher education in England again.
Edwards has now launched a lawsuit against Cliff College on the grounds of harassment, discrimination and unfair dismissal. He will argue that his rights under Article 9 and/or Article 10 of the European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR) were violated, Christian Concern reports.
In a statement about the lawsuit, Edwards said: “Anyone concerned about academic freedom, Christian freedoms and free speech should be deeply concerned by what has happened to me…The tweet was not defamatory; it was not an attack on any colleague or individual; it was not abusive; and it was not an extremist religious view. It was addressed to evangelicals as a point of doctrine, and it has been misunderstood by many who wish to cause personal and institutional trouble for those who express that view.”