Article Added On: December 20, 2004 - over 3 years ago
Title: Same-Sex Marriage: Faith groups quietly declare a Cold war
Author: Joe Woodard
Publication: The Calgary Herald
Publication Date: January 01, 2004 - over 4 years ago
Faith Groups: Other
Themes: same sex marriage/blessing

Abstract: The reactions to the Canada's Supreme Court ruling on same-sex marriage varies. Joe Woodard of the Calgary Herald reports that, while Calgary pastors are choosing not to preach or talk about the issue publicly, they say they would turn in their marriage licenses if they are forced to perform marriage ceremonies for same-sex couples. This is an extensive report about the reactions to the ruling from local religious clergies at evangelical churches, Anglican churches, United Churches, local Synagogues and muslim communities.

December 19, 2004

Despite the mythology about the power of Alberta's "Religious Right," local pastors are not rushing to address the issue of same-sex marriage from the pulpit.

"It doesn't fit with Christmas and doesn't fit with what I've been planning to preach on for the next two months," says Bow Valley Christian Church senior pastor Rick Scruggs.

"It's a relevant issue and the Bible is clear, but we try not to follow the fads. The challenge is finding a way to address it that doesn't cause more confusion."

This fall, some pastors in Nova Scotia and Manitoba handed in their licenses as marriage registrars after local courts ruled these registrars cannot turn away same-sex couples. But Scruggs has no plans to follow suit if a federal same-sex marriage law passes.

"There's still a place for us even in a corrupt system; otherwise, why stay in the world at all? Our job is to be a redeeming influence," Scruggs said.

"I'll take a stand if churches or pastors are going to be forced to act in an unbiblical manner."

Westside King's pastor Tom Morris said he has planned a series of sermons in February on the broader issue of human sexuality, including homosexuality, but he "didn't want to react to the political situation; I wanted to talk about it all from a more positive perspective."

Morris said he won't hand in his marriage registrar's license, if the law passes, because his members want to marry into "good, healthy heterosexual marriages." But he will refuse to perform a same-sex marriage.

Joel Vander Kooi of Bethel United Reform Church said he hasn't directly addressed the issue, but only because his flock already knows what's right.

"This is cultural warfare by a judicial dictatorship and there'll be a showdown someday," Vander Kooi said.

"And there'll be casualties."

Some pastors are more politically inclined.

First Baptist senior pastor Jake Kroeker has already preached on same-sex marriage as part of a month-long series on the whole area of human sexuality -- "including the obligations of heterosexual marriage." And he's encouraging his flock to get after their parliamentarians.

"If a gay or lesbian couple came to me and said they love each other and want to get married, I'd have to say: 'Look, I appreciate that's how you feel, but your feelings are simply arrested developments.

" 'I'd like to help you with your arrested developments -- I have arrested developments of my own and need help myself -- but I can't help you by condoning the things you do.' "

Kroeker won't hand in his registrar's license if the law passes.

"I'll fight them if they try to take it -- that would be like saying they control me," Kroeker says, "but I'll also fight them, if they try to make me marry a homosexual couple."

Brian Rushfeldt, director of the Calgary-based Canada Family Action Coalition, has been promoting public activism in Evangelical churches, and he's not satisfied with the results.

"We've been disappointed with the resistance of many pastors to addressing the marriage issue, their reluctance to preach for God's most basic human institution," Rushfeldt said.

Rushfeldt wonders if pastors worry about their tax-exempt status, but they never say so. Instead, "Clergy tell me they won't preach on homosexuality, because they want to get homosexuals into their churches, he said.

"I don't understand that. Have they stopped preaching against adultery? Against promiscuity? Of course the church is for all sinners, but have we stopped preaching about sin?"

Rushfeldt's organization is sponsoring a National Weekend of Prayer, Jan. 29-30, co-ordinating with Jewish, Catholic and Evangelical churches.

"And I'm hoping pastors won't be just rattling off a two-minute prayer, but seriously seeking God for what we're supposed to be doing," he said.

"There's still hope, but it'll take a powerful movement of God, because we may not have the numbers in Parliament."

Even as the same-sex marriage debate comes to a political climax, a new report on Canadian families reveals there are in fact very few same-sex couples in Canada.

The Vanier Institute of the Family report Profiling Canada's Families found the number of same-sex couples to be so insignificant, VIF research director Robert Glossop said that, nationally, "it could not be measured."

A 12-city Environics Research Group survey last February found Montreal had the most same-sex couples, at 0.51 per cent of all couples. And 0.44 per cent of Toronto couples were same-sex. But Hamilton, the major last city, had only 0.16 per cent same sex couples. So what the new Vanier study suggests is that, outside the dozen major urban centres, homosexual couples hardly exist at all.

The most co-ordinated Alberta opposition to same-sex marriage legislation may come, not from the religious right, but from the religious centre.

The six Catholic Bishops of Alberta, including Ukrainian Eparch Lawrence Huculak and Calgary's Bishop Frederick Henry, representing about 25 per cent of Albertans, have issued a joint pastoral letter on the issue.

"The family is a more fundamental social institution than the state," the letter reads.

"It is the right and responsibility of all Catholics, and all citizens troubled by the proposal, to reinvent the institution of marriage, to enter into the debate and, with clarity and charity, to make their voices heard by their political leaders. We urge them to do so."

Calgary's Henry said that in the short run, the best political course may be to pressure Liberal leader Paul Martin and NDP leader Jack Layton to allow a truly free vote in Parliament: "What about the new style of government? On such a fundamental issue, shouldn't party leaders allow their members to vote their consciences?" he asked.

In the long run, however, even if the law passes, the marriage issue won't go away.

"I'm sure there are going to be court cases; there's going to be a collision between religious rights and the right to sexual expression," Henry said.

He added that, for now, pastors turning in their registrar's licenses would be little more than "grandstanding," forcing couples to arrange both civil and religious marriages.

But if the government pressures churches to perform same-sex marriages, the churches will have to say, "Take your license and stick it."

Henry believes the churches' tax exemptions are relatively safe -- for now -- and the government has no co-ordinated plan for that fight: "But the forces of secularism are not going to rest. They'll be trying to pick off religious rights one after another."

The mainstream Protestant denominations are divided within themselves on the issue.

"The United Church of Canada is gay-positive, but I haven't preached on it recently," said Rev. Bob Mutlow of Woodcliff United on the west side.

"In the United Church, it really comes down to the local church board, because worship belongs to the local church. So if there was a request for a same-sex marriage, any decision would depend on a vote of the board."

The Anglican Church of Canada is more dramatically divided. The policy is a moratorium on same-sex blessings, but local priests say this diocese is split 50-50. And the envelope is being pushed from within.

Controversial New Westminster, B.C. Bishop Michael Ingham, who started blessing same-sex relations in his diocese two years ago, has actually criticized the Supreme Court opinion on homosexual marriage for exempting religious officials.

"It means that if you're a non-believer, you can't discriminate against gay and lesbians, but if you're a believer, you can," said Ingham.

"So if you want to discriminate against gay and lesbian people, join a religious organization."

Evangelical denominations tend to be more united. Facing a Nova Scotia court ruling for same-sex marriage, the Atlantic Baptist Churches voted to revoke the authorization of any Baptist minister who celebrates same-sex unions.

Calgary's Rabbi Moshe Saks of Beth Tzedec Synagogue said Conservative Judaism "has a clear position against same-sex marriage," but Saks is not encouraging his congregation to get politically involved, "because that's really an individual decision."

If performing same-sex marriages became mandatory, Saks added, he would have to turn in his license.

Hatim Zaghloul, chairman of the Muslim Council of Calgary, said his group is meeting to deliberate the response of their community to the proposed law.

"Of course we are; we'll come up with some sort of progressive plan," Zaghloul said.

"Our problem is, there aren't a lot of (federal) Liberal MPs in Calgary and the PCs already agree with us, so we'll probably lobby the prime minister directly. And it goes without saying that the Muslim organizations in Ontario will be contacting their Liberal MPs."

Original article