Elton John: ‘Jesus would approve of gay marriage’

Singer is meeting Vladimir Putin to discuss gay rights in Russia

Elton John has said Jesus Christ would approve of gay marriage, after revealing he is thinking of marrying his civil rights partner David Furnish.

In an interview with Sky News, John also stated that he is arranging a meeting with President Vladimir Putin in a bid to discuss improving Russia’s gay rights record.

“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,” said John. “He was all about love, compassion, forgiveness and trying to bring people together. That’s what the church should be about.”

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Discussing how organised religion had improved its attitudes to homosexuality, John said he saw “signs of hope” in the more tolerant views expressed by Pope Francis and Justin Welby, the Archbishop of Canterbury. But he said the Church of England’s refusal to allow gay clergy to marry was “old and stupid”.

The singer plans to meet President Putin in Russia in November. “I don’t know what good it will do,” he said. “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.”

Furnish and John had a civil rights ceremony in 2005, and John said they may get married in 2015. “It’ll be very quiet and off the cuff,” he said. “We had our big shebang when we had our civil union.”

John plays the final night of a UK tour on July 2 at Newcastle Metro Radio Arena, before a mainland European tour starts on July 4 in Spain.

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