The Students’ Union has voted to condemn church leaders at St Andrew the Great (StAG) and Holy Trinity churches for signing an open letter written in opposition to proposals to ban the practice of conversion therapy.

The churches are popular with Cambridge Christians, with the Christian Union frequently hosting events at the churches.

The open letter, signed by the vicars of both churches as well as 6 other church leaders from StAG, said: “the category of ‘Conversion Therapy’ is one which is so broad as to be essentially meaningless”.

The letter continued: “It should not be a criminal offence for us to instruct our children that God made them male and female, in his image, and has reserved sex for the marriage of one man and one woman.”

The motion passed unanimously last night (10/10) at the SU’s student council.

The motion also called on the SU sabbatical officers and leaders of the BME and LGBT+ campaigns to make a guide to inclusive places of worship for all religions and denominations.

The move has upset some student attendees of those churches, with several expressing concerns about the SU’s decision to weigh in on questions of faith.

One StAG attendee told Varsity: “I think it is unfortunate that the SU thinks itself a body capable of wading into a matter of conscience and religious conviction.”

Another student said: “The religious beliefs and practices of churches, citizens and students in and around the University of Cambridge are — or should be — of no concern to the SU.”

One student also raised concerns that the SU had not considered the feelings of all their constituents, saying: “has the SU taken into account the harm this could do to gay Christians wanting to live out traditional Christian sexual ethics?”

The move also caused consternation among Cambridge’s more progressive Christians.

One student who is involved in efforts to make Cambridge churches more welcoming to LGBT people said: “Though I am completely against the harmful and homophobic treatment of LGBTQ+ people in church spaces, I am concerned that the SU’s condemnation of HT and StAG leaders will only add to the potential alienation of students who attend these churches.

“We should be working towards inclusion, not exclusion, to create a truly safe Christian space for all students.”

Other students were more defensive of the SU’s move, however. Chang Liu, chair of the SU BME campaign, and the person who proposed the motion, told Varsity: “I think it’s being known in the community for a long time that these churches may not put students’ welfare first”.

“I do want to stress that this motion is not to ask Cambridge SU to take a stance on theological grounds, we are simply making sure students don’t become the collateral damage in the theological differences”, he added.

Martha Rand, another student involved in pushing for more LGBT+ inclusive churches, acknowledged: “there’s ways in which [the motion] is not perfect”, but said: “it is important for people to know if churches are affirming.”

Stuart Browning, vicar of Holy Trinity, was critical of the motion, telling Varsity: “It is sad that this CUSU motion both misrepresents Holy Trinity and was passed without any attempt to engage with the church directly.

“People of all sexualities are valued and welcome at HT and sexuality is in and of itself no barrier to full participation in church life.

“We do hold and teach mainstream biblical Christian views on sex, marriage and relationships, in accordance with current Church of England doctrine on the subject, and it is disturbing that this motion appears to attempt to shame and belittle those who hold these legitimate beliefs.”

StAG also said that they had not been contacted by the SU. Alasdair Paine, the church’s vicar, told Varsity that he had signed the open letter because he worried that the definition of conversion therapy the government was then using in a ban proposal went too far.

He said: “To the extent that ‘conversion therapy’ means coercion or manipulation, we’re against it. But the proposed legislation looked much broader, potentially criminalising those who simply continue to pass on Jesus’ teaching about marriage.”

“We are very enriched by our many student members, and, though we’re not perfect, we often hear what a good experience they have. Of course we deeply desire their welfare and flourishing”, he added.