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As people of faith, we reaffirm our belief in the sacred worth and dignity of every human being. We know that some individuals choose to enter into loving, committed, covenantal relationships with another individual. We, as a community of faith, bless these covenants as marriages, inclusive of diverse sexual orientations and gender identities.
When marriages for same-sex couples became legal last summer in the state of California, we and many other faith communities commemorated these unions as communal celebrations. When the passage of Proposition 8 eliminated the right of same-sex couples to marry on November 4, 2008, we were sad, angry, and disappointed that the marriages we had just celebrated were called into question, and that thousands of others would be robbed of the freedom to marry.
Disappointment was turned into a zeal for justice, however, as California Faith for Equality, the
California Council of Churches, and close to one thousand individuals, congregations and religious organizations signed an Interfaith Amicus Brief to repeal Proposition 8 and to protect our religious freedom to marry same-sex couples according to our beliefs. On the night before the California Supreme Court heard oral arguments, on our �Eve of Justice,� people of faith left the pews to pray with our feet that the Supreme Court would do the right thing.
Today, we applaud the Court�s decision to uphold the 18,000 marriages for same-sex couples performed last summer. However, we denounce the discriminatory language that is allowed to stay in the State Constitution as harmful to the emotional, psychological, and spiritual well-being of gay and lesbian families, and all Californians. We call for the elimination of article 1.7.5, which limits marriage to opposite-sex couples. We pray for a peaceful solution that will ensure equality and justice for all. We commit to the continuing education of Californians about marriage equality and offer emotional and spiritual support to gays and lesbians, who have suffered a temporary loss. We believe in the human capacity for resiliency, and the healing that community can offer. May peace begin with each and every single one of us.
As we work toward a country that values all its citizens, and a world where human diversity is celebrated, may we continue to take seriously our call to justice by speaking our truth to power. May we continue to practice compassion by always standing on the side of love.
Rev. Nancy Ballinger, Awakening Interfaith Spiritual Community
Rev. Susan Brecht, Community Church of Atascadero
Rev. Helen Carroll, Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, San Luis Obispo
Rev. Matthew Conrad, St Luke�s Episcopal Church, Atascadero
Rev. Bob Crouch, Community Presbyterian Church, Pismo Beach
Rev. Don Dallman, Retired Lutheran Pastor
Rev. Caroline Hall, St. Benedict�s Episcopal Church, Los Osos
Rev. Faye Hogan, St Peters Episcopal Church, Santa Maria
Rev. Mary Elizabeth Pratt-Horsley, St Benedict�s Episcopal Church, Los Osos
Rev. Steve Islander, Estero Bay United Methodist Church, Morro Bay
Rev. Harriet Linville, St Peter�s Episcopal Church, Morro Bay
Rev. Brian McHugh, St Benedict�s Episcopal Church, San Luis Obispo
Rev. Curt Miner, Congregational Church, San Luis Obispo
Rev Jim Neilson, Retired Presbyterian Pastor
Rev. Mark Richardson, Trinity United Methodist Church, Los Osos
Rev. Barry Turner, St. Stephens Episcopal Church, San Luis Obispo
Rev. Paul Valentiner, Retired Lutheran Pastor
Community Church of Atascadero
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