ABSTRACT
Christians, and indeed all believers, may need to work that much harder to remind the State of the merits of religious group autonomy. Parliament's aspiration that church autonomy and clergy selection be preserved may yet be foiled by clumsy drafting and a Commission determined to vindicate gay rights. The ordination of openly practising homosexual or lesbian candidates for the ministry (OPHM) has been a matter of sharp controversy within certain New Zealand denominations. Courts and the promulgators of international human rights instruments acknowledge the importance of deferring to the decisions of the religious organizations themselves when it comes to matters of leadership and internal governance. There exists an ironic possibility that human rights laws may operate to stifle the very liberty they seek to foster. Laws designed to preserve freedom may be turn out to be intolerant, repressive codes.
