Man to face criminal penalties for saying he left gay lifestyle on tv
Updated: Jan 26
The headline sounds like something created by a far-right website to make gay activists look bad, but it is absolutely true and totally accurate: “Ex-Gay Man Faces Charges for Sharing His Testimony About Finding Freedom in Christ.” Yes, Matthew Grech, who lives in Malta, “is facing criminal charges for allegedly promoting ‘conversion practices’ in his own country during an online interview about how he chose to leave his former homosexual lifestyle after finding salvation in Jesus Christ.”
In other words, because he testified on TV that Jesus changed his life and he no longer practiced homosexuality, he could potentially go to jail for up to 5 months and be fined over $5,000. The TV station has been charged too. And to repeat: I am not making this up.
If you are still rubbing your eyes and saying to yourself, “There must be more to the story,” the only thing you need to know is that Malta forbids all “conversion therapy” for all people of all ages. This is similar to a bill almost passed in California.
As reported by BBC News in 2016, “Under the new law, anyone who tries to ‘change, repress or eliminate a person's sexual orientation, gender identity and/or gender expression’ will be fined or even jailed.”
We're happy that Matthew Grech found salvation in Jesus in spite of the persecution he's now facing.