German pastor Marcus Piehl came under heavy fire in May after criticising "gender ideology" in a church bulletin "We are called to stand up for Biblical truth and not to conform to the spirit of the times." Pastor Piehl (51) was associated with the Evangelical Lutheran St he was transferred to another parish within the Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD) The whole commotion was triggered by an article written by him in the May/June issue of the parish newsletter Pastor Piehl criticised an appearance by Lady Bitch Ray at an SPD executive meeting in early March She stated that "it is also part of feminism to move away from binary gender constructions" "that there are two genders (woman and man) is just something invented developed and culturally determined." For Biblical-theological and social reasons the Nordstemmen pastor opposed this representation and advocated for "God's order Genesis 1:27 says: God created them male and female And on the lifelong union of man and woman in marriage He gives His blessing (Matthew 19:5-6)." The pastor then stood up for the traditional family and called for "taking this pandemic time also as an occasion to ask anew about Him and His values how would you characterise the Nordstemmen congregation "It is first and foremost a people's church congregation about 50 per cent of the population in Germany are still members of a church It also applies to Nordstemmen: About half of them are Protestant the church is like the fire brigade for many people: good that it exists several very committed members seriously live the faith and want to pass it on to others The congregation in Nordstemmen has about 2,300 members; about 50 come to Sunday service What prompted you to write your article for the church bulletin "In the sixteen years I have been a pastor I have had many confirmation students in my classes — very many great young people in recent years I have noticed that more young people have problems some of the young people who came along were people with conspicuous eating behaviour If you know the family situation of such a young person you often find a connection: There are problems at home the parents have divorced or something similar I can be wrong; it is my subjective observation scientific studies show that psychological or other problems in young people are often related to their domestic situation every fifth child in Germany grows up in a single-parent family Such a child is twice as likely to develop psychological problems as a child growing up in an average family The probability of becoming a drug addict is four times higher That's why I was distraught by the report on the SPD board meeting where a so-called porn rapper promoted transcending the sexes Mind you: instead of strengthening young people's identity as adolescent men or women I wanted to contradict this because the Bible teaches something entirely different The Bible only knows man and woman and nothing in between." Did you not expect your writing to cause such a stir But I wrote my contribution to our community for our 2,300 members I didn't expect it to become soon known throughout the republic and that the national media would report on it.” certain groups are very active on the internet.” Could it be that a church member sent the bulletin to the media "It was indeed some church members who were upset about my post who are more active on social media than I am "The reactions that surprised me the most were the ones where I was accused of homophobia: I didn't even mention the subject of homosexuality in my article And that I was accused of misogyny when I was actually advocating for women: stay together as a couple; men don't run away from your wife and family – because they are the ones who suffer the most." you also quoted the Kassel evolutionary biologist Prof Later you said you shouldn't have done that "I quoted Kutschera because he can't exactly be called Christian-friendly When such a person says gender research is an anti-biological pseudoscience –even more: political propaganda– that says something You apologised pretty quickly for your contribution I first received reactions from people in my community Some of them were women who had gone through a divorce They had to take care of their children alone They felt: "We already have so many problems and now the church is making life difficult for us.” That hurt me as a pastor because Those who have read my apology carefully know that I have not taken anything back Some people have taken it that way: He has taken everything back I would have liked to have worded my apology differently; I had no experience dealing with the press I did not retract my position on content and principle.” who complement each other wonderfully in their difference is the place where children can grow up best that is the most stable environment." the church leadership felt that you should leave Nordstemmen I had a good relationship with the church board I also wonder if this was the best solution for the congregation Have you considered taking your case to court but even in the interest of the congregation I should not have been transferred against my will The fact that a pastor writes something in the church bulletin that outrages some people is no reason to dismiss him A local church board may not dismiss a pastor on its own authority I agreed to the transfer because I felt that the issue had already caused so much commotion and discussion that I shouldn't harm the congregation by getting involved in a dispute." I have received most of the expressions of support My superintendent said he had made two stacks of letters: one stack of people against me and one stack of people who were for me both stacks were about the same height." Are there any ongoing discussions with the church leadership at the moment I have done nothing that could lead to disciplinary proceedings.” you indicated that you still need to be careful I have to be careful not to cause offence again." Does that mean you wouldn't write a similar article again we are called to stand up for Biblical truth and not to conform to the spirit of the age." You are not the first German pastor to face opposition in this area: The case against Olaf Latzel from Bremen is still pending appeal "I am filling in for a preacher who is on maternity leave and am now serving various congregations in the region Marcus Piehl is not the only one in Germany who has been criticised for speaking out on marriage to a fine of EUR 8,100 for "inciting hatred" against people with a different orientation Latzel has so far not been given a date when the trial will be continued a 71-year-old Christian restaurant owner in Berlin-Schöneberg also came under fire for "incitement to hatred" In the Netherlands, the case against Rev. A. Kort, pastor of the "Old Reformed Congregation in the Netherlands" in Krimpen aan den IJssel Gay activist Leon Houtzager and his lawyer Gerard Spong asked the Court of Appeal of The Hague this summer to have the Public Prosecutor investigate whether Rev Kort can still be prosecuted for insulting homosexuals you regularly hear the call for churches to speak "prophetically" lately "Prophecy is often associated with the future the term "prophecy" comes from a Greek word meaning to show others what God's word says Climate or the preservation of creation is a crucial topic But when it comes to concrete measures for climate protection some people know much better than we do as a church Marriage and family and the cohesion of society are also important issues it is the task of the church to stand up for these issues based on what the Bible tells us about them cannot be better networked and speak with one voice There are many small groups like "Kein anderes Evangelium" (No other Gospel) or “Netzwerk Bibel und Bekenntnis” (Network Bible and Confession) they hardly have a voice worth mentioning." Do you see a hardening of the climate around marriage and sexuality in Germany as well What is happening at universities there is serious we recently heard the news of Professor Kathleen Stock who resigned under the pressure of the gender movement It is incredible how such a small minority has been able to gain so much influence in such a short time all kinds of polls show that a large majority rejects gender ideology I always want to emphasise that God's word is not something that restricts us humans the question arises more and more: Who still stands up for conservative values I received a reply from a woman in police training She said that if a male arrestee said he was a woman had to pat him down to see if he had drugs or weapons on him including between his legs — a very unpleasant situation But because nowadays they say that everyone can choose their gender Then I think: who will stand up for people like this policewoman That she doesn't have to do something like that?” How did your wife and children experience the past time This is a translation of an article published by Reformatorisch Dagblad on November 27th