Thinking Anglicans

Equal civil marriage: some developments

Andrew Grice at the Independent reported yesterday Religious figures meet at conference to back plans to legalise civil gay marriage.

Religious figures who support gay marriage will today launch a fightback against church leaders who have come out against same-sex marriage.

Representatives from the Church of England, liberal Jews, the Quakers and the Unitarian and Free Church will join forces at Westminster to declare their backing for the Government’s plans to legalise civil gay marriage, which have provoked strong opposition from leaders of the Anglican and Catholic churches.

Some faiths want the Coalition to go further by giving churches the freedom to carry out religious same-sex marriage.

Those attending the conference will include Giles Fraser, a priest who resigned as Canon Chancellor of St Paul’s Cathedral last autumn following the Occupy protests; Dr Jeffrey John, the Dean of St Albans; Paul Parker, Recording Clerk for the Quakers; Rabbi Roderick Young; Derek McAuley, chief officer of the General Assembly of Unitarian and Free Christian Churches; and the Rev Sharon Ferguson, chief executive of the Lesbian and Gay Christian Movement…

The BBC had Labour host meeting of faith groups backing gay marriage.

Today the Evening Standard reports: Nick Clegg: Gay couples should have the right to marry in church, and also expresses editorial support for this.

Gay couples could soon win the right to marry in churches in a historic step towards equality, Nick Clegg told the Evening Standard today.

In an exclusive interview before Saturday’s World Pride festival in London, the Deputy Prime Minister said he now believed religious organisations should be free to conduct same-sex weddings if they wish.

“This is a personal view at the moment, but I think that in exactly the same way that we shouldn’t force any church to conduct gay marriage, we shouldn’t stop any church that wants to conduct gay marriage,” said Mr Clegg…

And John Bingham at the Telegraph has Nick Clegg backs gay marriage in churches – in break with David Cameron pledge.

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JCF
JCF
11 years ago

Being able to tell about meetings like this one are EXTREMELY HELPFUL, whenever I evangelize among those who only associate religion w/ anti-gay hate. Thank you, and God bless!

Randal Oulton
Randal Oulton
11 years ago
Gerry Lynch
11 years ago

There was a large Christian contingent at the inaugural meeting of Equal Marriage Northern Ireland last night, wearing our “Christians Who Want Equal Marriage” badges. It’s going to be a longer and more difficult struggle here than in GB, or the Republic, for that matter. Even when we get a majority vote through the Assembly, which we’re not far from, actually, the DUP can use the minority protection provisions of the Good Friday Agreement to veto equal marriage. Goodness knows what happens after that.

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