In recent days, Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon resigned as prime minister; she said she decided to do so for personal reasons, but in reality, she did so because of the defeat she suffered from the government in London, which has recently rejected Scotland’s law on self-determination of biological sex. In her full speech, Sturgeon showed her self-centeredness for the umpteenth time by repeating the words “I,” “me,” and “my” 153 times and only 11 times the name of the country she governs: Scotland. The Scottish people know how Sturgeon has always imposed LGBTI ideology as if it were the ‘state doctrine’: in schools, without the consent of parents, in “gender transition” clinics, and now with the new law on self-identification of sex, without medical or parental consultation, that has divided the country since last fall, and was also denounced by the UN in November and then on 16 January rejected by the government in London.
Now many await the appointment of the next first minister, the favorite being a staunch Christian, a very young 32-year-old Minister of Economy and Finance Kate Forbes. However, her Christian commitment may make her unfit for office. Forbes, who was born in the Highlands region (far from the power centers of Edinburgh and Glasgow), is admired for her thoughtfulness, her gentle temperament with political opponents, and her ability to connect with people. “I believe in Jesus Christ, my calling is to serve,” this is the motto that Kate, interviewed by the BBC in 2021, explained, “To be clear, I believe in the person of Jesus Christ. I believe that He died for me, that He saved me, and that my calling is to serve and love Him and to serve and love my neighbors with all my heart, soul, mind and strength. Politics will pass, I am a person before being a politician, and that person will continue to believe that I am made in the image of God.” Her pro-life stance is being criticized (in 2018 she declared that “the measure of true progress” is how the “unborn and terminally ill” are treated). Moreover, hers was the most influential voice within the government that called for slowing down and amending gender self-identification legislation, because hastily changing “the definition of male and female (…) would risk creating a wrong law.”
We shall wait and see, but one thing is certain. Scotland has a rising star, a competent and faithful Christian. Will it be possible for Kate Forbes, Nicola Sturgeon’s natural replacement, to become First Minister or will she be rejected because Scotland’s state religion is exclusively LGBTI?