International Statement
on Marriage Equality
Metropolitan Community Churches, an international movement of
Christian Churches reaching in and beyond the lesbian, gay, bisexual,
trans, queer, and heterosexual communities has preached a
three-pronged Gospel of salvation, community and social justice for 38
years.
Throughout these 38 years we have worked together to make real a world
of justice and equality and have celebrated more than 6000 same-sex and
opposite-sex weddings around the globe every year.
We celebrate with our sisters and brothers in Canada, South Africa,
England, the Netherlands, Spain and other progressive communities who
have already won the right to marry and/or civil partnerships for those
among us who are lesbian or gay and will continue to work for full
equality throughout the world of marriage for all who seek to legalize
their relationships within country laws that provide for marriage, for
both opposite and same-sex relationships.
We understand marriage equality to be a civil rights and justice issue
and that religious communities often differ on their theological
understanding of homosexuality and marriage.
Most religions have their own requirements for entering into a valid
marriage. The Roman Catholic Church, for example, will not marry first
cousins or divorced persons who have not received an annulment. Some
branches of Judaism will not marry a previously married woman unless she
has undergone a religious divorce by receiving a «get.» Some
religious officials will not marry two individuals unless at least one
is a member of their congregation. These will continue to be issues for
religious communities but are not considered within civil marriage.
Metropolitan Community Churches believes that any person who wishes to
enter into a civil marriage should have the right to do so and that
religious communities should have the right to decide whether or not it
will provide religious services to sanctify that marriage.
We will use our religious voice and our churches to both promote
and provide religious services and blessings for lesbian/gay couples who
wish to sanctify their relationship before God, regardless of legal
recognition, and will work with other communities of faith to come to a
deeper understanding of the value and worth of all of God’s
creation, including those who are homosexual.
Finally, we will use our resources to work in partnership with
other progressive communities, both secular and religious, to speak out
against both secular and religious voices that would seek to demonize
homosexuality and who are opposed to equal rights for same-gender
couples and full marriage equality.
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