Presbyterian pastor offends gays and tradies in one sentence that likens Complementarianism to male and female connectors

A Newcastle Presbyterian pastor, Rev Ian Copland posted a sign reading “even tradies know that you need both male and female joints to make a marriage,” on a billboard outside Wallsend Presbyterian Church in response to Greens MP Adam Bandt and Labor MP Stephen Jones introducing marriage equality bills in the Federal Parliament on Monday

Local gay man Nick Kelly told the Star Observer that he was disgusted by the billboard which he thought showed religious opponents of same-sex marriage had some way to go to live up to their own calls for respectful debate on the issue.“There is quite a large lesbian community in Wallsend so when those couples walk down the main street on Valentines Day that will be the first thing they have to look at.”

But some members of the secular community used graffiti to teach Rev Ian a little bit about Christianity with lines like... “love thy neighbour, not hate thy gays,” “let him without sin cast the first stone,” and, “religion is an equal right, how is marriage not?”

A number of tradespeople were also offended...Copland apologised if any tradespeople had thought he was implying that tradespeople were stupid and said he would have left out the word “even” in retrospect.


That Rev Ian sure isn't the sharpest tool in the shed!