Church Leaders Denounce Mass Gay Marriage Amendment

Church Leaders Denounce Mass Gay Marriage Amendment
by Margo Williams
365Gay.com Newscenter
Boston Bureau


Posted: April 5, 2004 8:01 pm. ET

(Boston, Massachusetts) In an open letter to coincide with the beginning of Easter Week and Passover 600 church leaders have called on Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney to distance himself from attacks on same-sex marriage.

"We reflect the truth that hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of people of faith strongly support the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Courts Goodridge decision,'' the letter says.

"To deny gays and lesbians the right to marry in the future would be tantamount to establishing a particular sectarian viewpoint in our civil law. All of our religions will be in great danger if the state begins to define religious sanctity rather than civil law."

The letter was signed by Rabbi Devon Lerner, Co-chair of the Religious Coalition for the Freedom to Marry which is comprised of clergy and faith leaders from 18 different religions including the United Church of Christ, Episcopal, United Methodist, Baptist, Reform and Reconstructionist Judaism and the Unitarian Universalist Associations.

"We are deeply disappointed that some prominent clergy have been attempting to impose their denominations definition of marriage and their rules for sanctifying marriages on the rest of us. Many of us have been sanctifying same sex religious marriages for years," the letter says.

"For us, there is no shame or sin in being homosexual. For us, love, commitment, respect and caring define marriage, not gender. Other churches have the right to disagree with us and they have the right to promote their own teachings and regulations within their communities. They do not, however, have the right to impose their religious beliefs on others."

"Any attempt to prevent the issuance of marriage licenses to same-sex couples is a violation of the civil rights of gay and lesbian citizens and an attack on religious liberty," the letter says.

The letter reminds Romney, a Mormon, that during the election campaign he promised he would not impose his religious on the citizens of Massachusetts. "We also call on you as a man of faith to help us, not hinder us, in our mission to care and serve our religious communities according to our own beliefs and practices."

There has been no reply from the Governor's office.

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