Belfast bakery discriminated by refusing gay cake order, court rules

By Ian Graham

BELFAST (Reuters) - A Northern Ireland bakery owned by devout Christians who refused to bake a cake with a pro-gay marriage slogan was found guilty of discrimination in Belfast on Tuesday and fined.

The case has become heavily politicized in Northern Ireland with members of the province's largest political party, the Democratic Unionist Party, proposing the introduction of a Conscience Clause Bill to allow the withholding of services on grounds of religious belief.

Northern Ireland's Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness, a member of the Irish nationalist party Sinn Fein, welcomed the judgment as "a good result for equality".

Gay rights activist Gareth Lee took Ashers Baking Company in Belfast to court in a civil action after it canceled his order for a cake with the slogan "Support Gay Marriage" on it. The case was funded by the British province's Equality Commission.

The firm initially accepted the order but later contacted Lee to cancel it and refund his money. Lee told a court hearing over three days in March that the bakery's refusal made him feel "unworthy" and "a lesser person".

Speaking outside the court just before the judgment on Tuesday, bakery owner Daniel McArthur said: "We happily serve everyone but we cannot promote a cause that goes against what the Bible says about marriage."

In her judgment, District Judge Isobel Brownlie said that while the defendants had a right to religious beliefs "they are limited as to how they manifest them".

For it to be otherwise "would be to allow religious belief to dictate what the law is," she added.

The court found that Ashers had discriminated against Lee on the grounds of his sexual orientation as well as his political beliefs and ordered the bakery to pay £500 ($776).

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• Belfast bakery discriminated by refusing gay cake order, court rules

Would you eat this Albino Burmese Python? It's sweet and tasty; seriously!

By David Strege at GrindTV

The photo of this Albino Burmese Python looks so real, Francesca Pitcher of North Star Cakes in Kent, U.K., was prompted to add this tagline: "****I DO NOT SELL SNAKES****. This photo is of a snake CAKE made to look like an Amelanistic Burmese Python for a birthday party."

Yes, the snake is a fake. It's a fake snake cake...

According to the U.K. Daily Mail, Pitcher's now-6-year-old daughter, Claudia, who loves reptiles, wanted a spooky-themed birthday party. She wanted something that would scare her friends. Pitcher suggested a snake cake.

She regretted that idea immediately, and for good reason. Pitcher has a snake phobia.

From the U.K. Daily Mail:

'At first I couldn't even look at the images of them online but as I kept researching them I realised they weren't so bad and had quite beautiful patterns.

'Once I had got over my phobia I just cracked on with it...'

Over the course of three days, Pitcher spent 12 hours baking and shaping sponge layers, using "a white chocolate fondant with special dye to make the skin and replicate the distinctive markings of the dangerous snake," according to the Daily Mail... (continued)

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About Cistercian Brandy Cake

These little cakes pack a lot of Christmas cheer. Our monk bakers load the batter of each cake with dates and pecans and two shots of brandy. When they come out of the oven, we lace them with more brandy then wrap them in brandy-soaked cheesecloth for good measure to keep them moist and flavorful. A perfect holiday cake for people who are looking for an alternative to traditional fruitcake.

About St. Bernard's Bourbon Honey Cake

This delicious spiced, honey cake, infused with Bourbon, Apple Brandy and coffee , is named after St. Bernard of Clairvaux, known as the "Mellifluous Doctor", because of his gift of word and honey-like, eloquent speech.

About St. Barbara's Cherry Kirsch Cake

The legend of St. Barbara tells us that while she was in prison, the young saint comforted herself by sprouting a dry cherry branch with some of the water her jailers brought her each day. In many places, it's a tradition to bring cherry branches into the house on December 4, St. Barbara's Day, so that there will be cherry blossoms for Christmas. Our St. Barbara Cake is made with walnuts, dried cherries and cranberries then we make the flavor bloom with a generous watering of cherry kirsch.

Fr. Robert wraps the St. Barbara Cakes in kirsch-soaked cheesecloth.

h/t to NLM

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