The Gathering Marriage Storm

Posted by Tom McFeely

Wednesday, April 22, 2009 8:48 AM

This video is part of the National Organization for Marriage’s new “Gathering Storm” media campaign.

It’s especially timely today, as state legislators in Connecticut may vote today on legislation to codify same-sex “marriage” in that state.

Last weekend, as CNS reports here, Connecticut’s bishops used weekend Masses to urge parishioners to fight the proposed legislation.

Pulpit announcements read in churches statewide April 18 and 19 called on Catholics to help defeat a Senate bill that seeks to codify the Connecticut Supreme Court’s ruling last October legalizing same-sex marriage. TheConnecticut bishops warned the bill “fails to protect the First Amendment rights of individuals, religious organizations and related societies,” CNS reported.

“Last month, Catholics across Connecticut joined with fellow citizens in sending a strong message to the state Legislature: Religious liberty must never be violated,” the bishops said in the pulpit announcement.

The bishops were referring to a March 11 rally that drew 5,000 people for a rally outside Connecticut’s state Capitol in Hartford to protest a bill — pulled from the Legislature the previous day — that would have given laypeople financial control of their parishes.

“Your swift and decisive action brought down Senate Bill 1098, which was a direct attack on the Catholic Church. We thank you for your courage in speaking out,” the bishops said. “We need you to speak out again. Now we are facing another attack on our religious liberty. It is very serious and must be stopped now.”

In neighboring Rhode Island, the state’s Republican Gov. Don Carcieri has strongly endorsed supporting the traditional one-man, one-woman definition of marriage.

Speaking in early April at a press conference in Providence in support of the “Gathering Storm” media campaign, Carcieri said American citizens, not the courts or legislatures, should be allowed to decide about the definition of marriage.

Carcieri, who is Catholic, noted that in the few states where same-sex “marriage” has been legalized, this happened without consulting citizens directly through ballot initiatives. Legislation is now before the Rhode Island General Assembly to legalize same-sex “marriage.”

“In Massachusetts it was the court,” said Carcieri. “Vermont it was the legislature. I believe it should be done with citizens. Let them decide.”

Filed under marriage