Quote of the Day

. . . The cultural discussion in which we're involved right now in American society, vis-a-vis marriage equality, is not a discussion about how and whether religious viewpoints should dictate legal norms in American society.

Religious viewpoints can't do that. Not in a bona fide secular democracy. Not in a pluralistic society normed by foundational documents that enshrine democratic principles in those normative documents.

This is a debate about equality. It's a debate about the full inclusion in our democratic society of a group of citizens stigmatized by prejudice, who continue to be excluded from the social mainstream by legalized discrimination that impedes their ability to contribute, to pursue their careers, to raise families, and so forth.

What on earth does any Christian church imagine it's doing, defending the exclusion of some members of the human community from the social mainstream, solely because a church wants to envisage those human beings as less than human? And in what way does the attack on those stigmatized human beings by leaders of any religious community – in Minnesota, notably the state's Catholic bishops – contribute to a healthy society that respects human rights? . . .

– William D. Lindsey
"Minnesota Theologian Gary Boelhower: Marriage Equality Is About Equality"
Bilgrimage
May 4, 2011

Recommended Off-site Link:
Banning Gay Marriage Would Institutionalize Injustice – Gary Boelhower (Duluth News Tribune, May 1, 2011).

See also the previous Wild Reed posts:
Winona Daily News Calls Proposed Marriage Amendment "Bigoted" and "Malicious"
Rep. Steve Simon on Gay Marriage and the Arc of History
Disappointing, But Not Unexpected: "Marriage Amendment" Bill Passes MN Senate Judiciary Committee
Governor Mark Dayton to LGBT Advocates: "I Stand with You"
A Celebration of Faith and Family; A Call for Compassion and Fairness
Quote of the Day – November 4, 2010
A Message for NOM (and the Catholic Hierarchy
Minnesotans Rally for Equality and Love
Responding to Bishop Tobin's Remarks on Gay Marriage
Archbishop Nienstedt Calls (Again) for a Marriage Amendment to Minnesota's Constitution
A Catholic Statement of Support for Same-Sex Marriage