Church of England initial response to Government “consultation” on same-sex marriage; Evangelical Alliance – Gay marriage consultation ‘makes a mockery of democracy’
Church of England initial response to Government “consultation” on same-sex marriage
The Church of England/Archbishops’ Council will study the Government’s consultation on whether to redefine marriage to accommodate those of the same sex and respond in detail in due course. The following summary of the Church of England’s position has been posted on the Church of England website:
“The Church of England is committed to the traditional understanding of the institution of marriage as being between one man and one woman.
“The Church of England supports the way civil partnerships offer same-sex couples equal rights and responsibilities to married heterosexual couples. Opening marriage to same-sex couples would confer few if any new legal rights on the part of those already in a civil partnership, yet would require multiple changes to law, with the definition of marriage having to change for everyone.
“The issue of whether marriage should be redefined to include those of the same-sex is a more complicated picture than has been painted. Arguments that suggest ‘religious marriage’ is separate and different from ‘civil marriage’, and will not be affected by the proposed redefinition, misunderstand the legal nature of marriage in this country. They mistake the form of the ceremony for the institution itself.
“Currently, the legal institution of marriage into which people enter is the same whether they marry using a civil or a religious form of ceremony. Arguments that seek to treat ‘religious marriage’ as being a different institution fail to recognise the enduring place of the established church in providing marriages that have full state recognition. The Church of England will continue to argue against changing the definition of marriage, which has supported society for so long.”
http://www.churchofengland.org/media-centre/news/2012/03/initial-response-to-government-consultation-on-same-sex-marriage.aspx
Gay marriage consultation ‘makes a mockery of democracy’
Christian Today – The Evangelical Alliance has slammed the Government’s consultation on gay marriage launched today.
The organisation accused the Government of ignoring widespread public opinion in favour of the current definition as a union between a man and a woman.
The consultation paper states: “This consultation is about how we best remove the ban on same-sex couples having a civil marriage, not on whether this should or should not happen.
“However, we are aware that there are a number of disparate views on this subject and would like to understand the views of all of those with an interest in this issue.”
The Evangelical Alliance said that the consultation paper was a “blatant acknowledgement” by the Government that it is “only going through the motions” of a consultation.
http://www.christiantoday.com/article/gay.marriage.consultation.makes.a.mockery.of.democracy/29477.htm
Don’t use the words husband and wife! Coalition’s same-sex wedding reforms would axe terms from official documents
Mailonline – Reforms to allow same-sex marriage will see the words husband and wife removed from official forms, it was revealed last night.
Tax and benefits guidance and immigration documents must be rewritten so they no longer assume a married couple is a man and a woman.
And private companies will be told to overhaul paperwork and computer databases containing the words.
Marriage certificates could even be affected by the Coalition proposals, with rules possibly axing terms such as bride and bridegroom.
The reforms – promised by Prime Minister David Cameron last autumn and set out in a consultation paper launched yesterday – intend to open civil marriage to gay and lesbian couples for the first time.
A different category – religious marriage – will be reserved for male and female couples.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2115677/Dont-use-words-husband-wife-Coalitions-sex-wedding-reforms-axe-terms-official-documents.html?ito=feeds-newsxml
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