The head of Brisbane’s Citipointe megachurch has told worshippers to lobby MPs about proposed religious freedom and sexual discrimination laws, after the church school’s failed attempt to introduce enrolment contracts with anti-gay and anti-trans provisions.
On Sunday, Citipointe senior global pastor Mark Ramsey apologised to his Pentecostal churchgoers for any “confusion and pain that people felt this week”, before leading parishioners in a standing ovation for Brian Mulheran, the Citipointe Christian College principal, who has currently stood aside.
Mulheran announced on Friday he would take “extended leave” after significant community backlash against his attempts to force families to sign the contracts.
Guardian Australia has learnt Mulheran’s decision to stand aside came after he was confronted by a group of the college’s senior teachers, who demanded he leave the school immediately or face the prospect of significant staff resignations.
The contracts, which were abandoned on Thursday, described homosexuality as “immoral”, listing it alongside bestiality and pedophilia, and said students would only be enrolled on the basis of their biological sex.
The following afternoon, senior teachers confronted Mulheran about his handling of the issue and other underlying concerns about the direction of the school.
They warned that if he was still at the school on Monday, a significant group of teachers would resign.
The situation remains fraught and it is understood at least three teachers have already quit. Several families, including some teachers, have withdrawn their children from the college.
A group of concerned school parents say Mulheran – who could still return to the school after his leave – must now formally resign.
Adding to parent and teacher concerns is the way the Pentecostal church has responded to the situation.
Citipointe Christian College is not a standalone entity – it is constituted as a ministry of the church and its parent organisation, the Christian Outreach Centre/International Network of Churches.
Video of Sunday’s sermon shows Ramsey praise Mulheran from the pulpit, prompting parishioners to stand and applaud for 40 seconds.
“I want you to know today that pastor Brian Mulheran is one of the kindest, (most) caring people on planet Earth,” Ramsey said.
Ramsey also addressed the contracts. He apologised for any “confusion and pain that people felt this week”, and said the church would seek to “reword” its statement of faith, which was the source of the anti-gay and anti-trans statements included in the abandoned enrolment contract.
He said the aim of a new statement would be “keeping truth, but explaining it better”.
“Please be assured that the way this is being handled, though you might not understand all of it, is the very best way forward for pastor Brian, our Christian community and our college,” Ramsey said.
“We’ve been asked the question why we would we issue an amendment to the enrolment agreement that says the college will only enrol a student on the basis of gender that corresponds with their biological sex.
“Well, it’s biblical truth.”
He then encouraged worshippers to “engage with your members of parliament” around religious freedom and sex discrimination laws.
After a week of intense media scrutiny, Ramsey started his sermon with a joke.
“I just want to start by saying that Citipointe church is no longer Brisbane’s best kept secret,” Ramsey said.
He later said “the majority” of parents at the school agreed with the long-held traditional Christian doctrine and it was one of the reasons they choose the college over another school.
“We believe faith groups must be able to align with their faith.”
One teacher who contacted Guardian Australia on Monday said Ramsey’s sermon had only served to reinforce concerns within the school community.
“I’ve just got no confidence that the church is taking this as seriously as it needs to,” the teacher said.
Ramsey and Mulheran could not be contacted for this story.
In withdrawing the contracts last week, Mulheran said in a statement that he deeply regretted that some students felt discriminated against because of their sexuality or gender identity.
“As stated previously, the college does not and will not discriminate against any student because of their sexuality or gender identity.”
