Bishop: Gays should get medical help

A bishop has sparked controversy today by calling on gay people to seek medical help.

The Rt Rev Dr Peter Forster, the Bishop for Chester in England, said in an interview with the Chester Chronicle newspaper: “Some people who are primarily homosexual can reorientate themselves.”

Bishop Forster opposes the appointment of the openly gay Gene Robinson as the bishop of New Hampshire in the US.

The move has sparked debate recently amongst members of the Anglican Church across the globe.

The Bishop said he would encourage gay people to try ’reorientation’, adding: “I would not set myself up as a medical specialist on the subject – that’s in the area of psychiatric health.”

Bishop Forster, who is married with four children, also believes families should be made up of a traditional husband and wife.

He explained: “All the sociological evidence is that children fare better when raised in a traditional home by a man and a woman who have committed themselves to a life-long marriage.”