Category Archives: Gay Marriage

05/15/13

Bishops say full effect of ‘redefining marriage’ will be felt for years

More sour grapes from our beloved leaders.

The “full social and legal effects” of state lawmakers’ decision to legalize same-sex marriage “will begin to manifest themselves in the years ahead,” said the Minnesota Catholic Conference.
“Today the Minnesota Senate voted to redefine marriage in Minnesota. The outcome, though expected, is no less disappointing,” the conference said in a statement.

Archbishop John Nienstedt

Say, I don’t look like i have a same-sex attraction, do I?

The state Senate in a 37-30 vote gave final approval Monday to a same-sex marriage bill. The state House passed the measure May 9. Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton signed it Tuesday.

The law is to take effect Aug. 1, making Minnesota the 12th state to allow same-sex couples to marry. Earlier in May, Rhode Island and Delaware became the 10th and 11th states, respectively, to legalize same-sex marriage.

“The church, for its part, will continue to work to rebuild a healthy culture of marriage and family life, as well as defend the rights of Minnesotans to live out their faith in everyday life and speak the truth in love,” said the Minnesota Catholic Conference, the public policy arm of the state’s bishops.

“Some wish to believe that sexual relationships outside of the marital context of husband and wife are innocuous, choosing to ignore the fact that they are actually harmful to individuals and to society as a whole,” said Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone of San Francisco, chairman of the U.S. bishops’ Subcommittee for the Promotion and Defense of Marriage.

“There are many of us Americans, including many Minnesotans, who stand for the natural and true meaning of marriage,” he said in a statement released Tuesday. “They know that men and women are important; their complementary difference matters, their union matters, and it matters to kids. Mothers and fathers are simply irreplaceable.”

Cordileone called it “the height of irony” that the final vote on “the redefinition of marriage” and the governor’s signature on the bill occurred just a day “after we celebrated the unique gifts of mothers and women on Mother’s Day.”

In November, Minnesota voters rejected a ballot measure to amend the state constitution to define marriage as only a union between a man and woman, but polls show Minnesotans remained sharply divided over legalizing such unions. According to Minnesota Public Radio, a recent survey showed a majority are against same-sex marriage.

The measure changes the definition of marriage from “between a man and a woman” to “a civil contract between two persons.” A prohibition against marriage between relatives, such as first cousins, remained in place.

In a statement about the earlier House vote, the conference said lawmakers by approving same-sex marriage “set in motion a transformation of Minnesota law that will focus on accommodating the desires of adults instead of protecting the best interest of children.”

“This action is an injustice that tears at the fabric of society and will be remembered as such well into the future,” it said.

The Catholic conference said the bill posed “a serious threat to the religious liberty and conscience rights of Minnesotans.”

It includes legal protections for clergy and religious groups that don’t want to marry same-sex couples, but the conference said lawmakers failed “to protect the people in the pew — individuals, non-religious nonprofits, and small business owners who maintain the time-honored belief that marriage is a union of one man and one woman.”

According to the conference, lawyers on both sides of the issue have stated that no accommodations for “the deeply held beliefs of a majority of Minnesotans will result in numerous conflicts that will have to be adjudicated by our courts.”

In a separate statement issued after the House vote, Duluth Bishop Paul Sirba said the church “will continue to uphold and propose to the world what we know, through sound reason and through divine revelation, to be the authentic nature of marriage: a permanent union between one man and one woman, uniting a mother and a father with any children produced by their union.”

No civil authority, he said, “has the authority or competence to redefine marriage. Civil authorities have the obligation to protect and defend true marriage for the sake of justice and the common good.”

Sirba acknowledged that many disagree with the church’s stand on the issue and expressed dismay over the negative tone the debate over same-sex marriage has taken toward the church.

“We are particularly mindful of our brothers and sisters who have same-sex attractions,” he said.

(Have you ever noticed how our fearless leaders can’t and won’t use the word gay? We use it to self-define, but they want to define us for us, using the euphemism — our brothers and sisters who have same-sex attractions. It’s like if our same sex attraction is an add-on, the likes of which they want us to pray away, if we don’t mind.)

“Our hearts break that this debate has often been used as an occasion to sow mistrust and doubt, as if followers of the God who is love, and whose love for all people we proclaim each day as the body of Christ, are acting instead out of some sort of ill will.”

“To all those with same-sex attraction, we continue to extend our unconditional love and respect. For those who have heard God’s call and respond in faith, hope and love, striving to walk in his ways, we also offer our pastoral support,” the bishop added.

In Rhode Island May 2, Gov. Lincoln Chafee signed into law a bill to legalize same-sex marriage in that state. Bishop Thomas Tobin of Providence expressed “profound disappointment” that the measure to “legitimize same-sex marriage” passed the Legislature.

In an open letter to the state’s Catholics, he said the Catholic church has fought very hard to “oppose this immoral and unnecessary proposition,” and that God would be the final arbiter of people’s actions.

Same-sex marriage became legal May 7 in Delaware; the law goes into effect July 1.

In an April 15 letter to Delaware legislators, Bishop W. Francis Malooly of Wilmington said marriage “is a unique relationship between a man and a woman” and it’s not the government’s place to “define or redefine” it.

Complete Article HERE!

05/15/13

And then there were 12

Minnesotans Cheer As Governor Mark Dayton Signs Marriage Equality Bill Into Law

 

It’s official, y’all!

Following a 37-30 vote in the Minnesota Senate yesterday, the bill that would soon make Minnesota the 12th state to legalize same-sex marriage was officially headed to it’s final destination: the desk of Governor Mark Dayton.

mark-daytonDayton, a longtime supporter of marriage equality, made a celebration of the landmark event by holding a signing ceremony on the south steps of the Capitol just moments ago.

“What a day for Minnesota, and what a difference a year and election can make in our states,” Dayton told the cheering crowd before he signed the bill. “Last year there were concerns that marriage equality would be banned here forever. Now my signature will make it legal in two and a half months.”

Dayton’s signature on the bill will make Minnesota the first Midwestern state to legalize same-sex marriage by legislative vote, and the third state within the last month, following victories in Rhode Island and Delaware.

Now that the bill has been signed into law, it will take effect on August 1. Something tells us Minnesota’s ministers are in for a fabulous fourth quarter!

Complete Article HERE!

05/7/13

Delaware state Senate votes to become 11th state allowing same-sex marriage

A divided Delaware state Senate voted Tuesday to make their state the 11th in the nation to allow same-sex marriage, after hearing hours of passionate testimony from supporters and opponents.

delaware-state-sealThe Senate’s 12-9 vote sends the bill to Democratic Gov. Jack Markell, who supports the measure and planned to sign it later in the day. It would go into effect July 1.

“I think this is the right thing for Delaware,” the governor said after the vote, while posing for pictures with supporters outside his legislative office. “It took an incredible team effort.”

Gay rights activists and their supporters in the chamber erupted in cheers and applause following the Senate vote.

Delaware’s same-sex marriage bill was introduced in the Democrat-controlled legislature last month, barely a year after the state began recognizing same-sex civil unions. The bill won passage two weeks ago in the state House on a 23-18 vote.

While it doesn’t give same-sex couples any more rights or benefits under Delaware law than those they have in civil unions, supporters argued same-sex couples deserve the dignity and respect of married couples. They also noted that if the U.S. Supreme Court strikes down the Defense of Marriage Act, which bars married gay couples from receiving federal benefits, civil unions would not provide protections or tax benefits under federal law to same-sex couples in Delaware.

Opponents, including scores of conservative religious leaders from across the state, argued same-sex marriage redefines and destroys a centuries-old institution that is a building block of society.

Under the bill, no new civil unions will be performed in Delaware after July 1, and existing civil unions will be converted to marriages over the next year. The legislation also states that same-sex unions established in other states will be treated the same as marriages under Delaware law.

The bill does not force clerics to perform same-sex marriages that conflict with their religious beliefs. But under an existing Delaware law banning discrimination based on sexual orientation, business owners who refuse to provide marriage-related services to same-sex couples for reasons of conscience could be subject to discrimination claims.

Delaware joins neighboring Maryland and the nearby District of Columbia as jurisdictions that have approved gay marriage. Last week, Rhode Island became the 10th state to allow gay and lesbian couples to wed, with independent Gov. Lincoln Chafee signing the bill an hour after its final passage.

Complete Article HERE!

05/3/13

Catholic bishop warns against attending same-sex weddings

File under: Sour Grapes.  Really, Bishop?  It’s God who looks unfavorably upon marriage equality?  Really?  Remember when pious Catholics were warned not to attend marriages between a man and a woman that were held in non-Catholic churches?  Was God pissed off at that too back then?  I guess he got over it, huh?  You shameless fraud!

By Eric W. Dolan

Bishop of Providence Thomas Tobin, the Roman Catholic leader of Rhode Island, on Thursday warned Catholics that God looked unfavorably upon those who attended same-sex weddings.

Thomas TobinIn a letter published as Rhode Island was poised to become the tenth state to embrace marriage equality, Tobin wrote that Catholics should have “respect, love and pastoral concern” for LGBT individuals.

But that didn’t mean Catholics should accept their relationships or attend their wedding ceremonies.

“At this moment of cultural change, it is important to affirm the teaching of the Church, based on God’s word, that ‘homosexual acts are intrinsically disordered,’ (Catechism of the Catholic Church, #2357) and always sinful,” Tobin explained.

“And because ‘same-sex marriages’ are clearly contrary to God’s plan for the human family, and therefore objectively sinful, Catholics should examine their consciences very carefully before deciding whether or not to endorse same-sex relationships or attend same-sex ceremonies, realizing that to do so might harm their relationship with God and cause significant scandal to others.”

Complete Article HERE!

05/2/13

Rhode Island Is Final New England State to Approve Gay Marriage

By Annie Linskey

On the subject of same-sex marriage, New England is now united.

rhode island marriage equalityRhode Island became the 10th U.S. state and final one in the region to legalize gay weddings today, after its House of Representatives approved a bill expanding marriage rights to homosexuals. Governor Lincoln Chafee, a 60-year-old independent, had lobbied for the measure since taking office in 2011 and planned to sign it immediately.

“New England is now complete,” Marc Solomon, national campaign director at Freedom to Marry, a New York-based group that helps and funds local gay-rights organizations, said by telephone. “We have an entire region of the country that has approved the freedom to marry.”

Rhode Island’s law will take effect Aug. 1. In addition to the five other New England states — Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Connecticut and Massachusetts — Washington, Iowa, New York, Maryland and the District of Columbia allow same-sex couples to marry. Delaware, Illinois and Minnesota may all approve similar measures by May 31, Solomon said.

Chafee had pitched the measure as a way to spur economic development. He tentatively scheduled a bill signing ceremony for 5:45 p.m. local time, according to his office.

The law will make Rhode Island “a place that is welcoming to the younger generation, the creative generation, entrepreneurs,” he said in an interview at Bloomberg News headquarters in New York this week.

No Surprise
Frank Schubert, national political director for the National Organization for Marriage, a Washington-based group that fights same-sex marriage legislation around the country, said the loss for his side wasn’t a surprise.

“It is a heavily Catholic state, which is what helped us hold same-sex marriage off for so long,” Schubert said by e- mail. “It is also one of the most Democratic states in the country.”

Rhode Island’s House, led by Representative Gordon D. Fox, a Democrat and the country’s first openly gay House speaker, first passed a same-sex marriage measure by 51 to 19 in January. On April 24, the Senate approved a modified version by 26 to 12 that expanded protections for religious organizations. That change prompted today’s vote, which was largely procedural. It passed, 56 to 15.

All five Republicans in the 38-member Senate endorsed the proposal, marking the first time that a state Republican legislative caucus has unanimously done so, they said.

Generational Shift
“We recognize that there is a national consensus building on this generational issue, and we are glad that support for the freedom to marry is growing within the Republican Party,” the caucus said in a statement last week.

Two years ago, Rhode Island’s legislature pulled back a gay-marriage bill and instead approved civil unions. The state has granted fewer than 100 of them since, according to the Health Department. Rhode Islanders United for Marriage, a local gay-rights group, has said the low rate stems partly from the state’s proximity to others where gay marriage is already legal.

Last May, Chafee signed an executive order recognizing same-sex marriages performed out of state.

Complete Article HERE!

04/25/13

In bizarre move, bishop who ousted gay catholic from parish rejects 18,000 signatures, sends them back

File under: insulated, monolithic, callous, tone deaf church power structure

by Ross Murray

On April 11, Nicholas Coppola delivered over 18,000 signatures gathered through Faithful America to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Rockville Centre, asking that Nicholas be once again allowed to volunteer with his parish, after getting married to his husband.

nicholas-coppolaOn April 23, Bishop William Murphy mailed them back, accompanied by one sentence:

“FROM YOUR FAITHFUL ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP.”

Seriously. You can see the cover letter here.

“I really don’t understand what sort of message Bishop Murphy is trying to send,” said Nicholas Coppola upon learning that the signatures were mailed back. “Is he no longer listening to the voices of the faithful? I have more questions than anything now.”

“Bishop Murphy owes Nicholas and the 18,000 people who’ve signed this petition a real answer, not a tactless ‘return to sender’” said Michael Sherrard, executive director of Faithful America. “I’ve never heard of a church official returning a petition like this without any kind of explanation.”

In January, Nicholas was informed by his priest that because he got married, he was to be removed from all parish activity, including altar server, lector, visitation minister, and religious education instructor. More than 18,000 people, including many Catholics, stood up in support of Nicholas, and asked that he be restored to his participation with the parish. Rather than speak with Nicholas, the Diocese dispatched security and would not allow Nicholas to enter the building. A security guard stated that he was to collect Nicholas’ petition and deliver it to the correct person.

Since that time, Nicholas has launched a second petition through Change.org, inviting Cardinal Timothy Dolan to break bread with him and listen to the story of at least one faithful gay Catholic. The petition comes in response to Cardinal Dolan’s admission to George Stephanopoulos that the Roman Catholic Church hasn’t “been too good” about not attacking gay and lesbian people. The Change.org petition has collected over 20,000 signatures to date.

According to canon law, the bishops must respond to letters that have been delivered. Later the same day that Nicholas delivered the petitions, the diocese issued a media statement reaffirming Nicholas’ ouster. It is unclear if returning the petition is the official response, per canon law.

“Nicholas Coppola is a faithful Catholic who loves his church, and he is now being treated like a threat by his own bishop,” said Ross Murray, GLAAD’s Director of News and Faith Initiatives. “Now more than ever, it is vital that Cardinal Dolan break bread with Nicholas to hear how he is being treated by the church that he loves so much.”

Take Action: Tell Cardinal Dolan to break bread with Nicholas Coppola

It’s time to replace shunning with real dialogue. Please join GLAAD in asking Cardinal Dolan to break bread with Nicholas Coppola so he can see that they are just like any other American Catholic family. Visit www.glaad.org/breakbread to learn more.

Complete Article HERE!

04/23/13

Same-sex marriage: France changes law

The French parliament has approved a bill legalising same-sex marriage and adoption, following a divisive public debate.

husband & husbandFrance becomes the 14th country to pass a law allowing gay marriage, and follows New Zealand last week.

Opponents of the move have staged some of the biggest protests seen in France in years, though polls suggest a small majority in favour of gay marriage.

Demonstrations are expected from both supporters and opponents of the bill.

Police reinforcements have been brought in and security stepped up. Although previous rallies have been overwhelmingly peaceful, some clashes on the fringes have been blamed on far-right elements.

President Francois Hollande has made the law his flagship social reform.

He is expected to add his signature to the bill once it has cleared any challenge in the constitutional council.

Opponents of gay marriage hope the council will block the bill – but analysts say that is unlikely.

Supporters say gay people will only have equal rights when they are allowed to marry.

They also say the campaign of opposition has encouraged an increase in violent attacks on gay people.

There have been some high-profile attacks in recent weeks, and on Monday gunpowder was posted to the speaker of the lower house, demanding he stop the vote.

The violence and threats have been condemned by both sides.

Some argue this is the most important social reform in France since the death penalty was banned in 1981, says the BBC’s Christian Fraser in Paris.

France becomes the ninth country in Europe to allow same-sex marriage. It has already been legalized not just in the traditionally liberal Netherlands and Scandinavia, but also in strongly Catholic Portugal and Spain. Legislation is also moving through the UK Parliament.

But the measure has aroused stronger than expected opposition in France – a country where the Catholic Church was thought to have lost much of its influence over the public.

In January, a protest in Paris against the bill attracted some 340,000 people according to police – one of the biggest public demonstrations in France in decades. Organisers put the figure at 800,000.

Since then both sides have held regular street protests.

The opponents, backed by the Catholic Church and conservative opposition, say France already has civil partnerships for homosexual couples, and extending rights to marriage undermines an essential building block of society.

Opinion polls suggest about 55-60% of the public support same-sex marriage.

However, support for adoption by same-sex couples, which is also provided for in the bill, is only at about 50%.

Opponents have marched under banners declaring a child’s right to a mother and father.

At a last-ditch demonstration on Sunday, Camille, 32, told AFP news agency as she fed her baby of four months: “We are here for the rights of the children… We take it as a slur when we are called homophobes or fascists.”

Complete Article HERE!

04/17/13

New Zealand legalises same-sex marriage

New Zealand’s parliament has legalised same-sex marriage, the first country in the Asia-Pacific region to do so.

Lawmakers approved the bill, amending the 1955 marriage act, despite opposition from Christian lobby groups.

husband & husbandThe bill was passed with a wide majority, with 77 votes in favour and 44 against.

Hundreds of jubilant gay-rights advocates celebrated outside parliament after the bill was passed, calling it a milestone for equality.

People watching from the public gallery and some lawmakers immediately broke into song, singing the New Zealand love song “Pokarekare Ana”, AP news agency reported.

Some opinion polls have suggested that about two-thirds of New Zealanders support the reform, although others polls suggest the public are more divided.

Parliamentarians were allowed a conscience vote, and, crucially, the reform had the backing of both the Prime Minister John Key and leader of the opposition David Shearer, the BBC’s Phil Mercer in Sydney reports.

Celebrations have been held in pubs and clubs in the capital Wellington, our correspondent adds.

Same-sex civil unions have been legal in New Zealand since 2005.
‘Human rights’

“In our society, the meaning of marriage is universal – it’s a declaration of love and commitment to a special person,” Labour MP Louisa Wall, who introduced the legislation, said.

Historically and culturally, marriage is about man and a woman”

Bob McCoskrie Family First

“Nothing could make me more proud to be a New Zealander than passing this bill,” she added.

Tania Bermudez and Sonja Fray, a same-sex couple, said the bill was about human rights.

“It means that we can actually call each other wife,” Ms Fray said.

However, Conservative Party leader Colin Craig said there were many people who disagreed with the bill.

“We’re seeing the politicians make a decision tonight that the people of this country wouldn’t make,” he said.

Bob McCoskrie, founder of the lobby group Family First, said the bill undermined the traditional concept of marriage.

“Historically and culturally, marriage is about man and a woman, and it shouldn’t be touched,” he said.
Celebrations begin at the Caluzzi Bar and Cabaret venue after New Zealand MP’s gathered today to vote on the gay marriage bill at Parliament House on 17 April 2013 People gathered in bars and pubs to watch the vote and celebrate the results

New Zealand becomes the 13th country to legalise same-sex marriage.

Other countries include the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Canada, South Africa, Argentina and Uruguay.

French and British lawmakers have also voted in favour of legislation allowing gay marriage, although the bills have not yet been passed into law.

No other country in the Asia-Pacific region allows gay marriage.

Australian members of parliament overwhelmingly voted against a bill that would have legalised same-sex marriages in September. However, some states allow civil unions for same-sex couples.

China does not allow gay marriage. However, transsexuals who have undergone surgery are able to marry someone of the opposite sex, provided their new gender is verified by the local public security authorities.

Complete Article HERE!

04/15/13

Constitutional convention backs extension of marriage rights to same-sex couples

By Ruadhan Mac Cormaic

The constitutional convention has voted overwhelmingly in favour of extending marriage rights to same-sex couples.
Some 79 per cent of members voted to recommend that the constitution be amended to allow for same-sex marriage, with 19 per cent against and the remainder having no opinion.

gay irelandSupporters of the proposal, some of whom cheered and wept as the result was announced this afternoon, hailed it as a landmark on the road towards equality for gay couples and urged the Government to act swiftly by calling a referendum. The convention’s recommendation will now be sent to the Government, which has pledged to hold a debate in the Oireachtas and set out its response within four months.

Tánaiste Eamon Gilmore welcomed the result, saying he had always believed “that our laws reflect the past, not the future” on this issue. “It’s not the role of the State to pass judgement on who a person falls in love with, or who they want to spend their life with,” he said.

Asked what form the constitutional change should take, the convention – comprising one third politicians and two thirds ordinary citizens – 78 per cent of members voted for a directive amendment (“the State shall enact laws providing for same-sex marriage”) while 17 per cent opted for a permissive amendment (“the State may enact laws providing for same-sex marriage”).

The members also voted in favour of recommending that the State pass laws “incorporating changed arrangements in regard to the parentage, guardianship and the upbringing of children”.

Minister for Justice Alan Shatter said he welcomed the support expressed for “the reform and modernisation” of laws in relation to parentage, guardianship and upbringing of children.

“Essential work has been undertaken on the preparation of a new Family Relationships and Children’s Bill to address these issues in relation to children and details of the bill will be published in the coming months,” he said.

The same-sex marriage discussion had attracted considerable public interest, with more than 1,000 submission having been lodged with the convention. Today’s vote followed a weekend of discussion on the topic at the Grand Hotel in Malahide, north Dublin, where members heard from legal experts as well as supporters and opponents of the proposal.
In a joint statement this afternoon, advocacy groups Marriage Equality, the Gay and Lesbian Equality Network (GLEN) and the Irish Council for Civil Liberties welcomed the outcome as “an historic step”.

“It is a major milestone on the remarkable journey to full constitutional protection for lesbian and gay people and families in Ireland,” said GLEN director Brian Sheehan. “It builds on the extraordinary progress we have achieved over the last 20 years, and clearly demonstrates that Ireland is ready to take the next step to complete that remarkable journey.”

The Irish Catholic Bishops Conference was one of three groups that gave presentations arguing against same-sex marriage.

Commenting on the outcome today, a spokesman for the Catholic Communications Office said: “While the result of the constitutional convention is disappointing, only the people of Ireland can amend the constitution. The Catholic church will continue to promote and seek protection for the uniqueness of marriage between a woman and a man, the nature of which best serves children and our society.”

Convention chairman Tom Arnold thanked the participants and said proceedings were conducted in a fair and transparent manner. “This weekend’s discussions have been both passionate and thoughtful, both heartfelt and rigorous,” he said.
Independent Senator Ronan Mullen said the debate on same-sex marriage had been a “flawed process”. He said documentation commissioned from various experts ahead of the meeting was “not inclusive of all the relevant issues and failed to be completely impartial”.

Senator Mullen also said “some citizen members of the convention felt that they had been pressured by politician members at the tables to support a particular line”.

Same-sex marriage is permitted in 11 countries, and Bills are being debated in a number of others, including France, Britain and Uruguay.

The next meeting of the Constitutional Convention will consider the Dáil electoral system and the way in which politicians are elected.

Complete Article HERE!