US Pastor Jailed For Refusing To Marry Gay Couple

A pastor at the Christian Proctor Church in
Vermont, has been sentenced to one year in
federal prison after refusing to marry a gay
couple.
This comes shortly after the Supreme
Court’s 5-4 decision ruling that states must
allow gay-marriage.
The Christian Pastor, 56-year-old Paul
Horner, had his lawyer speak to reporters on
his behalf.
“We are currently disputing the guilty verdict
and I am confident my client will be a free
man here shortly,” said attorney Tom
Downey. “Horner was just using his best
judgement according to his rights and
religious freedom in this country.”
The Honorable Myron Danus handed down
the harsh sentence.
“Religious freedom goes both ways, Mr.
Horner,” Danus told a packed courtroom. “It
is not your place to deny individuals the
same rights that everyone else has, rights
that were passed down and agreed upon in a
court of law, the ultimate court, the Supreme
Court. It is not your decision whether or not
you agree with the law but more importantly
that you follow it and enforce it.”
According to the criminal investigation, the
Christian Proctor Church is registered with
the state as a “religious corporation” limited
to performing “one-man-one-woman
marriages as defined by the Holy Bible.”
But the church is also registered as a for-
profit business and city officials said that
means the owners must comply with state
and federal regulations.
Steve Shand president of the Vermont
Family Research Committee, said it is “open
season on Americans who refuse to bow to
the government’s redefinition of marriage.”
“Homosexuals are gay,” Shand told
reporters. “Why should Christian ministers
be forced to perform and celebrate any
marriage that conflicts with their beliefs?
It’s a slippery slope my friend. Pretty soon
these same pastors will be forced to wed
animals or kitchen appliances. This is not
my America!”
Gwen Hawkins who is president of the LGBT
Pride Center in Vermont said she is happy
with the guilty verdict.
“We just want the same rights as everyone
else and this guilty verdict sets a great
precedent,” Hawkins said. “These fanatical
Christians base their life on one verse in the
Bible but they seem to forget the other 99%
of the verses in the book.
For example, why can’t we stone to death
Bristol Palinfor having a baby out of
wedlock? And what about her mother, Sarah
Palin, breaking the rules of Corinthians
14:34 which clearly state that as a woman,
she is not allowed to teach or to assume
authority over a man; she must be quiet.
But no, they like to pick the one verse in the
Bible about gay people and build their camp
around it.”
Proctor is a town in Rutland County,
Vermont, United States. The population was
1,741 at the 2010 census. Proctor is home
to the Vermont Marble Museum and Wilson