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Lowenna Waters
Aug 31, 2018
If you want to argue that homosexuality isn't allowed by the Bible, think again.
Despite Christianity often being used to justify homophobia, rather than being supportive of the LGBT+ community, this kick-ass Christian is bucking the trend, and proving that Christians can be LGBT+, too.
An incredible video has gone viral, in which Nici Lintern-Gittens owns a homophobe who was protesting at Cardiff Pride 2018.
Nici's wife, Alison, posted the video to her Facebook account, where it has now had nearly 500 shares:
Selena Caemawr, who captured the footage, explained what happened:
 I'm part of Songbirds Choir, Wales' only choir for LBT+ Women and Non-binary people.
We saw the preacher en route and decided to double back and sing at him because how better to keep people safe from hearing his message of hate than singing over him and making him unheard!
Nici Lintern-Gittens, a fellow Songbird who was also there representing The Gathering, an LGBT Christian group that meets in Cardiff at the United Reformed Church, intervened with him whilst we sang.Â
In the video, Lintern-Gittens can be heard saying:
Jesus's love is for everyone.Â
God's love is for everyone. You need to read your Bible!
She continues:
There are six verses in the Bible that mention homosexuality out of 40,000 verses.Â
If you go back to the original translation it says nothing about homosexuality.Â
At that moment, a man dressed as Jesus photobombs the video, saying:
Jesus loves the gays!
Lintern-Gitten then continues:
You can't judge us! Are you God?Â
God says you should never judge.Â
God says 'thou shalt not judge!'
The man responds that he's 'not judging', but that doesn't go down particularly well.
At the end, she finishes:
Not in the words of Jesus, jog on.
Boom.
Many Facebook and YouTube users were quick to show their support for the woman, and to express how impressed they were with Lintern-Gittens' knowledge of scripture, and sound judgement.
Commenting on the video, one wrote:
This is iconic on so many levels! I missed this chap but I'm glad this exchange took place. What an absolute legend of a woman!
Another said:
Jog on indeed, well done. I really wish I could have been there this year. Thanks to the people that stood up to this spreader of hate and lies. We need more people to take action and speak up and less people just letting it happen. <3
Another shared their favourite moment from the altercation, when another Pride protestor secretly placed an LGBT+ flag in the homophobe's backpack.
Taking to Facebook, Luke Bennet wrote:
My favourite part (appart from Jesus) was when someone walked past and put a pride flag in his backpack
This isn't the first example of Christians standing up against homophobia within their religion, and preaching love instead of hate, to have made the news in recent weeks.
On 2 August, during Austin Pride Week, best-selling author and Christian Jen Hatmaker decided to give out 'free mum hugs' to LGBT+ youth who had been disowned by their homophobic parents, simply because of their sexuality.
Furthermore, earlier this year, Christians attended a Pride march in Marikina, east of Manila, with placards apologising for the Church's historic abuses against the LBGT+ community. Signs in the march included slogans such as ‘I’m sorry. We’re here to apologize [sic] for the ways that we as Christians have harmed the LGBT community.'
The change in Christianity's approach to the LGBT+ community could in part be due to Pope Francis, who in 2016 said Catholic Christians owe an apology to gay people.
On a flight from Armenia to Rome, in 2016, he said:
I believe that the church not only should apologise to the person who is gay whom it has offended. But has to apologise to the poor, to exploited women, to children exploited for labour; it has to ask forgivingness for having blessed many weapons.
Despite his apology, he still maintained that homosexual acts are sinful.
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