In a letter read during Masses over the weekend, Bishop Richard Malone voiced opposition to news conferences held last week urging Mainers to end marriage discrimination and calling on state legislators to enact same-sex civil marriages.In the letter, the head of the Diocese of Portland wrote that marriage - as ordained by God - is an institution exclusive to one man and one woman who "are then given the responsibility to procreate the human race, and to nurture, educate, and pass on shared values and mores to their offspring."
The head of the Roman Catholic Church in Maine went on to tell his membership of nearly 200,000, or about one-sixth of the state's population, that redefining marriage to include same-sex couples ultimately strips away what the church considers an essential component - namely the ability and obligation to have children.
"To strip marriage of this essential component is to render marriage meaningless and open it up to endless revision and redefinition," Malone's letter went on to say.
The bishop's letter comes in response to religious leaders across the state holding simultaneous news conferences Thursday - including one in Auburn. The Rev. Mark Doty, pastor of Hammond Street Congregational Church, United Church of Christ, in Bangor, announced that more than 120 religious leaders representing 14 different faiths from throughout Maine have formed the Religious Coalition for the Freedom to Marry in Maine. While not a political action committee, the group of clergy are working to raise awareness about the issue of same-sex marriage across the state.
"Marriage, as we know it, has been preserved, rewarded, and recognized by the state in numerous ways because the state has long recognized the foundational nature of traditional marriage to the good of the nation and entire civilizations," Malone wrote in his letter.
Monsignor Marc B. Caron of Prince of Peace Catholic Community in Lewiston said that the Catholic perspective on marriage has never wavered over the course of history. Marriage by Roman Catholic standards has always represented a life-long relationship between a man and a woman.
"For us, marriage doesn't belong to the state," Caron said. "The state doesn't have the authority to transform it any other way."
He pointed out that there is what he considers a misconception of marriage for many people. State laws view marriage as a contract between two people for as long as they want to be together. But for Catholics, entering into marriage is a holy sacrament in the eyes of God that is meant to last a lifetime.
"I'm against it. Just because they make laws out of it doesn't make it right," said Roger Bosse, 61, of Lewiston, a member of the Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul in Lewiston. "It's a sacrament. It's a gift from God. It's between a man and a woman. Not between a woman and a woman or a man and a man."
Caron stressed how Malone's letter also pointed out that while the Catholic church opposes gay marriage, it has offered unwavering support for changes that fall under the category of "spousal benefits" such as hospital visitation and health insurance. Such changes, according to Malone's letter "...were supported in the interest of of preserving basic human rights for every person."
He went on to write that Maine can expect to see a same-sex marriage initiative in the near future.
"Naturally, we will continue to speak out on issues which threaten the basic dignity and human rights of all individuals, regardless of their age, race, ethnicity, religion, or sexual orientation," Malone wrote at the end of his letter. "However, we can never do so at the cost of compromising those eternal, fundamental truths as handed on to us in our faith tradition as well as the natural law."
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(Source: SJC)