No single church defines marriage for Americans

A bill legalizing same-sex marriage for couples in New York state is at a standstill over the issue of exemptions for religious organizations and individuals. The reach of these religious protections is wide-ranging -from whether Catholic adoption agencies may reject same-sex couples, to the right of religious caterers to refuse services for gay weddings. In New York’s Marriage Equality Act, should there be exemptions for religion? What should happen when equal rights for gay citizens and the right to religious free exercise clash?

Religious freedom has been a central part of our nation since its inception, and so it never fails to intrigue me when I see those on the right suddenly remembering the religious freedoms guaranteed to all Americans.

The United States is one of the most diverse religious countries in the world. No single religious voice can speak for all traditions on issues of sexuality and marriage, nor should government take sides on religious differences. Indeed, clergy from many religious traditions already perform marriages and unions for same-sex couples.

Clergy are never forced to perform marriage ceremonies against their will. Clergy have discretion to decide whom they will marry, and religious groups must have the right to discern who is eligible for marriage in their own tradition. All clergy should be free to solemnize marriages without state interference.

The best way to protect our nation’s precious religious freedom is to respect the separation of church and state when it comes to equality under the law. Our governments must not deny same-sex couples access to civil marriage, any more than they would recognize only certain marriages performed by clergy as legal.

As a Unitarian Universalist minister, I have delighted in performing weddings for both same-sex and other sex couples. I look forward to the day—soon—when I can do so legally in New York State.

Debra Haffner  | Jun 23, 2011 2:13 PM