A Church in County Down was subject to a protest led by a Sinn Fein MLA and numerous threats of violence on social media for showing a film dealing wtih the issue of same-sex attraction.

Pastor Rodney Stout spoke out after Christian group Core Issues Trust held the all-Ireland premiere of its film, Voices of the Silenced, at Ballynahinch Baptist Church, Co Down, on Tuesday night. The film, which says that gay people can “choose not to live out their homosexuality”, offers a critique of sexual politics in the Western world.

However, before the screening got underway a group of around 30 people, including Sinn Fein MLA Emma Rogan, gathered outside the church to protest what they thought was an advocacy of so-called ‘conversion therapies’, the use of inordinate methods to force a change in people’s behaviour.

The South Down MLA stated: “There is nothing wrong with being gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender and Sinn Fein totally oppose the use of ‘therapies’ which are aimed to change, repress and/or eliminate a person’s sexual orientation, gender identity and, or gender expression”. Ms Rogan added: “Sinn Fein believe that ‘conversion therapies’ should be a banned throughout Ireland.”