December 3, 2014
RESTORING MARRIAGE:
Half of Americans want separation between church and state in marriage (Bob Allen, 12/02/14, Baptist News)
About half of Americans and a quarter of Protestant ministers believe clergy should say "I don't" to the tradition of solemnizing marriages as agents of the state, according to a new poll by LifeWay Research.The research arm of LifeWay Christian Resources released results of a survey Dec. 10 showing 49 percent of Americans believe religious weddings should not be connected to the state's definition and recognition of marriage.More than a third (36 percent) believe clergy should no longer be involved in the state's licensing of marriage. Support for clergy remaining involved in civil marriage is higher among pastors -- 24 percent believe they should get out of the marriage business while 71 percent disagree.The survey comes at a time when growing acceptance of same-sex marriage is causing many conservative clergy to rethink their role as a wedding officiant acting on behalf of the state. More than 300 people recently signed a pledge sponsored by First Things magazine committed "to disengaging civil and Christian marriage in the performance of our pastoral duties."
Differentiating a mere civil contract from a solemn institution is the way to go.
MORE:
Civil partnerships should be for everyone, no exceptions (Charles Keidan and Rebecca Steinfeld, 3 December 2014, The Guardian)
When we decided to formalise our commitment to each other last year - on our third anniversary in the snow-capped Pyrenees - we wanted to express it in a way that reflected our values. Like many long-term cohabiting couples, we already saw ourselves as partners, and we thought an official civil partnership would perfectly capture the essence of our relationship. Being civil partners would give us greater legal rights and responsibilities without the social expectations, pressures and traditions surrounding marriage.It sounds simple in theory, but sadly, in practice, the option of a civil partnership is not available to us, nor to the thousands of long-term cohabiting couples like us. Why? Because we are different genders. As the law stands, only same-sex couples can enter into civil partnerships. Same-sex couples can now choose to have a civil partnership or a marriage. However, heterosexual couples do not have this choice.
Posted by Orrin Judd at December 3, 2014 9:13 PM
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