Posted on 09/28/2004 7:11:37 AM PDT by presidio9
In its strongest condemnation yet of Spanish government plans to legalize gay marriage the Roman Catholic Church said it was akin to releasing a "deadly virus" into Spanish society.
The cabinet of Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero this week is expected approve the gay marriage legislation and send it directly to Parliament.
A vote is expected early next month and the bill is expected to pass despite opposition from conservatives and the Church. Once it becomes law the first marriages could take place early next year.
"This legislation is imposing a virus on society, something false that will have negative consequences for social life," declared Juan Antonio Martinez Camino, the official spokesperson for the Spanish Bishops Conference.
In an interview on Spanish television Martinez Camino said church has nothing against gays but feels a union of two people of the same sex is simply not a marriage because it cannot create children.
Despite a reputation is one of the world's most staunchly Catholic countries, polls show that nearly half of the people say they almost never go to Mass, and a third say they are simply not religious.
A survey published Monday in the newspaper El Pais, which supports the Socialist party, said 62 percent of those questioned support gay marriage.
In June Rodriguez Zapatero was summoned to the Vatican for a severe tongue lashing from Pope John Paul. The Papal denouncement of gay marriage came two weeks after the Prime Minister first announced his government would bring in the bill.
Both Holland and Belgium allow gay marriage. Seven other European Union countries give limited status to same-sex couples. A bill is currently before the British House of Commons to establish a domestic partner registry.
The only area in the United States to permit gay marriage is Massachusetts. Five Canadian provinces and the Yukon Territory also allow gays to marry.
Rodriguez Zapatero’s government also is planning a major overhaul of relations between the government and the Church. The Roman Catholic faith receives massive financial support from taxpayers.
Deputy Justice Minister Luis Lopez Guerra last week said the government was correcting what he called "undeniable advantages" enjoyed by the Catholic church and guaranteeing that Spain will be a secular state.
ALready posted here, but without paragraphs!
ALready posted here, but without paragraphs!
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1228848/posts
sorry; fingers faster than brain.
The government has no business in marriage.
Gays should have the same rights as straights.
Anyone else see the inherent contradiction in this person's statements?
I don't think that poster understands the issue. Certainly doesn't exhibit any genuine study of the issue.
"attractive sheep should have the same rights as straights."
I think that sheep do, in Scotland...
Anyone else see the inherent contradiction in this person's statements?"
Agreed. We should amend the US Constitution to say that only certain groups of people have inalienable rights, and that the those groups are subject to change.
Well, congratulations to the Spanish. You guys elected a bunch of lefties as a result of the train station bombing...now you reap the fruit of that decision.
If the government has no business in marriage, then they shouldn't be stepping in and forcing the church to redefine its definition of marriage. Why gays would want to marry in a church is beyond me, but I suppose that's beside the point. If they really want to be married, it should be strictly at city hall and not involve the church. That or they could start some gay drive-in marriage chains in Las Vegas.
"If the government has no business in marriage, then they shouldn't be stepping in and forcing the church to redefine its definition of marriage."
Agreed.
"If they really want to be married, it should be strictly at city hall and not involve the church. "
Unless the church in question is OK with it.
"That or they could start some gay drive-in marriage chains in Las Vegas"
Or Key West, FLA, or Frisco...
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