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Christian Man Learns Fate In Court After Facing Prison For Allegedly Promoting Conversion Therapy
Matthew Grech, a Maltese man who spoke about leaving his LGBTQ identity behind to realign with his Christian faith during a 2022 television interview, faced prosecution for allegedly promoting conversion practices for three years.
Under a 2016 law in Malta, both the practice and advertisement of efforts aimed at changing or suppressing a person’s orientation or gender identity are criminalized.
Highlights
- Matthew Grech was cleared by a Malta court after facing legal action over a TV interview in which he spoke about leaving homosexuality to follow his Christian faith.
- The magistrate ruled that public discussion about the same does not amount to advertising conversion therapy under Malta’s 2016 law.
- Online reactions remain divided, with supporters praising the ruling while critics question Grech’s claims about his past identity.
On Wednesday, March 4, however, a court found Grech not guilty of the accusations leveled against him.
Following the ruling, social media users expressed mixed reactions regarding both his personal journey and the court’s decision.
“He used to be gay until one day something happened, and he felt a change,” one user commented, while another wrote, “The court was right to rule that he did not commit any crime by expressing himself differently.”
RELATED:
Man exonerated by the Malta court after LGBTQ activists pursued a conversion advertisement case against him
Image credits: Relevant Christianity
“I understood that in the Bible, homosexuality is not an identity as we make it nowadays,” Grech expressed in his 2022 conversation with PMnews.
“And neither is it a feeling, but a practice. This means that no matter what s**ual feelings a man or a woman experiences, if they have s**ual relations with a person of the same s*x, they commit the homosexual act in God’s eyes, and that is a sin,” he added.
Image credits: Relevant Christianity
Silvian Agius, a former senior European Union equality official who helped draft Malta’s Affirmation of S*xual Orientation, Gender Identity and Gender Expression Act, alongside former and current activists with the Malta Gay Rights Movement — Christian Attard and Cynthia Chircop — filed police reports after the interview aired.
They argued that the interview served as “marketing” for the International Foundation of Therapeutic and Counseling Choice (IFTCC), an organization that Grech represents.
Image credits: Christian Concern
However, the court found that Grech at no point invited anyone to attend therapy to change their orientation and only shared his own conversion experience.
According to MaltaToday, Magistrate Monica Vella compared the TV interview to public debates on other controversial issues, as she ruled that discussing a subject does not amount to criminal conduct.
Image credits: Relevant Christianity
Grech faced up to five months in prison and a fine of 5,000 euros ($5,400) upon conviction.
PMnews journalists Mario Camilleri and Rita Bonnici, who were also prosecuted in the case, were also declared not guilty.
Netizens remain divided after the ruling, with some accusing Grech of betraying his gay identity and others backing the court ruling
Image credits: Matthew James Grech
“No one can change their s**ual orientation. I’ll say it again — nobody can turn from gay to straight or from straight to gay. It is something you are born with,” one said.
“There can never be an ex-gay unless you live in denial,” echoed a second.
“Ex-gay is a trend,” added the third.
One siding with Grech’s explanation of how he went from being a homosexual to a straight man to abide by his Christian faith said, “God truly changes people in different ways and degrees when we come into right relationship with Him.”
“He made the right choice,” said a second voice.
Image credits: CConcern
Praising the court for acquitting Grech of conversion claims, meanwhile, one said, “The truth prevails. Well done!” causing the next to voice, “Justice was served.”
“I am happy for him if he is at peace,” a third said.
“Common sense prevailed,” noted another.
Matthew Grech also reacted to the judgment while warning about the Maltese law in question
Image credits: Christian Concern
“It is a big day, and I’m very thankful that the court decided for freedom of speech,” Grech said in a Facebook video.
“The court decided for freedom of religion and has announced that I had every right to share my Christian views around s**uality and gender, and to mention organizations that are helping Christians live consistently with their belief system,” he added.
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Calling on the EU to make sure the legislation has no place in Europe, Grech claimed that “activists will use these laws to target any dissenting view around s**uality and gender.”
Agius, Attard, and Chircop notably denied a reaction to their defeat when Fox News Digital requested one.
“This was a big win for freedom of speech,” a netizen believes
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