Replying to Masses leave Church after Anti-Gay comments

Less than two weeks ago following a televised debate with religious people and affiliates against people for gay rights, thousands of people started leaving the Evangelic-Lutherian church in Finland. At the moment the number is closer to 35,000 and rising, which is unprecedented in Finland.

The whole outrun was mostly because of the comments of the leader of Christian Democrats party, Paivi Rasanen, who spoke of homosexuality as a "psychosexual" birth defect and a disease that goes against the word of God and should not be allowed under the eyes of the church, especially gay marriage.

The funny thing is, Rasanen has no actual authority or relation to the operations of the church, but it's been called as something that broke the camel's back in the discussion of the church in Finland vs. modern values and finally got many people who were already against church policy to have an excuse to leave.

What do you think? Could something like this happen in your countries as well?