Gordon College has lost its long-running maintenance contract with the city hall in Salem Massachusetts because of it’s stand against homosexuality.
Salem Mayor Kimberley Driscoll cited the college’s “behavioral standards” policy, which specifically forbids “homosexual behavior” for students and faculty.
“This is in violation of the LGBT-inclusive non-discrimination ordinance that was unanimously adopted by the Salem City Council earlier this year,” said Driscoll. “The city does not contract with private parties that willfully discriminate on the basis of age, ancestry, color, disability, family status, gender identity or expression, marital status, military status, national origin, race, religion, sex or sexual orientation.”
A city in Massachusetts has opted to end a contract with a Christian college over the academic institution’s opposition to homosexuality.
The mayor for Salem recently announced that the city’s contract with Gordon College for usage of the Old Town Hall, set to expire later this year, will be immediately terminated.
Rick Sweeney, vice president of marketing and communications at Gordon College, told The Christian Post about the contract to use the Old Town Hall.
“Gordon College had been in a contractual relationship with the city of Salem since 2008 to manage Old Town Hall, one of the most historic buildings in the city,” said Sweeney.
“This was a reciprocal arrangement where we provided management of the facility in exchange for using it for educational programs connected to Gordon, and as well as ‘curation’ experiences for history majors at Gordon.”
Sweeney also told CP that Gordon College was already shifting away from “event planning” in order to “refocus on educational efforts.”
“The transition was going to occur in August. The city had the option of opting out of the contract early,” said Sweeney.
“When the college became part of a public controversy over attention on longstanding behavioral standards we have as a private Christian institution, they decided to move quickly.”
Salem Mayor Kimberley Driscoll told CP that at specific issue was Gordon College’s “behavioral standards” policy, which specifically forbids “homosexual behavior” for students and faculty.
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We have a constitution in our United States of America that guarantees religious freedom. When will the governments of this country understand that forcing religious bodies to foresake what they believe to adopt secular standards is a clear violation of those basic rights granted to all Americans?
How on earth can I stay true to God and still comply with laws that refute what He says in his Word? That is totally nonsensical. We either have religious freedom or we do not.
I encourage those in charge at Gordon College, and their supporters, to take up action against the city for clear violation of religious liberty. Take a stand now because it affects every Christian in the United States.