There are plenty of reasons to love Sir Elton John. He has serious eyewear game, he’s written some of the most iconic pop songs of the past fifty years, and he’s a committed champion for human rights everywhere.
And his remarks about Jesus Christ’s hypothetical stance on gay marriage are totally spot-on.
Speaking in an interview with Sky News, John stated, “If Jesus Christ was alive today, I cannot see him, as the Christian person that he was and the great person that he was, saying this could not happen. He was all about love and compassion and forgiveness and trying to bring people together and that’s what the church should be about.”
Though John stated he believes there are “signs of hope” everywhere in the changing tide of long-held religious beliefs, there are still miles to go.
“These are old and stupid things,” he said. “Globally, we seem to have gone backwards over the last 18 months, in certain areas.”
But it’s not just in England — where the Church of England’s refusal to allow gay clergy to marry, in addition to the requirement that Catholic priests remain celibate, are big issues for John — the singer also has his eye on influencing the fraught sexual politics in places like Russia.
“I’m going to Russia in November, and I will try and meet Putin and I will try to talk to him. I don’t know what good it will do. But unless you build a bridge…It’s no good putting up a wall and saying, ‘I’m not talking to these people.’ The only thing that gets solved is by talking to people.”
Given that Saturday was the 45th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots, and today marks the annual Pride Parade in New York City, John’s words hold particular resonance. Though we’ve come a long way from those days of overt and disparaging hatred, we still have much farther to go.
The popularity and progressive nature of Pope Francis has Elton hopeful for the future. “The new Pope has been wonderful, he’s excited me so much,” John stated. “He’s stripped it down to the bare bones and said it’s all basically about love.”
And, just like another popular British musical outfit once said, “Love is all you need.”
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