Formerly gay Christian convert wins court battle in Malta over ban on ‘conversion therapy’

After a three-year legal battle, Maltese singer Matthew Grech, accused of publicly sharing how he abandoned a homosexual lifestyle after his conversion to Christianity, was finally acquitted on Wednesday, March 4.

The trial against the 36-year-old singer, a former contestant on “X Factor Malta,” began in April 2022 following an interview on the program “PMnews Malta” in which he spoke about his faith journey and how he left homosexuality behind, in a context that also addressed the topic of conversion therapy.

The singer expressed his disagreement with the term “conversion therapy” and stated that the deeper he went into his Christian faith, the more he understood that homosexuality “is not an identity as we make it nowadays.”

If someone “has sexual relations with a person of the same sex, they commit the homosexual act in God’s eyes, and that is a sin. Just like every other sin, one can repent from it and ask God for forgiveness and ask him for strength to overcome,” Grech stated in the interview, as reported by Christian Concern.

In 2016, Malta became the first country in Europe to ban practices aimed at changing sexual orientation. Following the broadcast of the program, LGBT activists sued Grech and the two presenters, Mario Camilleri and Rita Bonnici, initiating the first trial with international repercussions in an attempt to undermine the rights to freedom of religion and of the press.

After the 17th court hearing, the final verdict was reached: The three defendants — who had faced five months in prison — were acquitted by the judge, who considered the interview a personal expression of faith and not a platform for advertising so-called conversion therapies.

Speaking about the transformative power of Christ is not a crime

After the ruling, Grech thanked God on his Facebook profile “because justice has prevailed.” He maintained that he was never guilty of anything, “except speaking openly about my own life, about my spiritual journey to becoming a Christian, and the profound difference and freedom that my faith has made in every aspect of who I am.”

“Today’s decision is not just a personal vindication, it is a reaffirmation of a fundamental principle: speaking about one’s lived experience, including the transforming power of Christ, is not a crime. That this should happen in Malta with the support of the wider European political network should be a warning to the world,” he argued.

Grech also expressed his disagreement with legislation banning conversion therapies in his country, which he believes is being used as “a weapon against freedom of speech.”

Following his experience, he urged the European Commission of the EU and the Maltese government to repeal the law, in which he said LGBT ideology is enshrined, and which is “being used against Christians to silence any alternative views to the dominant view on sexuality and gender.”

The singer, who belongs to an evangelical church and volunteers with gay Christians who wish to live according to their faith, has used social media for years as a means of evangelization, reminding people that the Bible says that homosexuals have been saved, sanctified, and justified in the name of the Lord Jesus.

“This is the good news. This is the Gospel. It offers hope, change, and transformation. As Christians, we will always defend this, no matter the cost,” stated Grech, who recently shared the news of his engagement to his girlfriend, Hollie.

Catholic teaching on homosexuality

The Catholic Church teaches that homosexual acts are “intrinsically disordered” and therefore gravely contrary to the moral law.

However, the Catechism of the Catholic Church distinguishes between homosexual inclination, which is not a sin in itself, and the acts themselves, which are considered morally reprehensible.

The Church exhorts people with homosexual attraction to live chastely and says that they “must be accepted with respect, compassion, and sensitivity. Every sign of unjust discrimination in their regard should be avoided.”

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

Source: https://www.ewtnnews.com/world/europe/ex-gay-christian-convert-wins-court-battle-in-malta-over-ban-on-conversion-therapy