Scottish bishops steps up campaign against same-sex marriage

The Catholic Church in Scotland is stepping up its campaign against Government proposals to legalise same-sex marriage.  

The hierarchy has sent out a second wave of 100,000 postcards to help parishioners make their views known to the Scottish Assembly.  

The Scottish Government is currently consulting on whether to legalise gay marriage.  

The consultation document says the Scottish Government’s initial view is that it supports such legislation.  

The consultation will finish in December.

Cardinal Keith O’Brien said earlier this week, “We have been overwhelmed at the take-up and it’s crystal clear that it underlines the strength and depth of the opposition to same-sex marriage.”  

He added that the Church would be sending out the “second wave of postcards as many parishes have run out.”

Cardinal O’Brien has previously stated, “The view of the Church is clear, no government can rewrite human nature; the family and marriage existed before the state and are built on the union between a man and a woman. Any attempt to redefine marriage is a direct attack on a foundational building block of society and will be strenuously opposed.”

Some ministers from the Church of Scotland have also asked to be included in the second wave of cards.  

Meanwhile, Muslim and Catholic leaders in Scotland are to hold a meeting to discuss their shared concerns about the Government’s plans.  

Bashir Maan, spokesman for Glasgow Central Mosque, the largest in Scotland, has confirmed that senior figures from both groups will meet to discuss a joint response to the contentious plans.

The mosque’s leader has also written to First Minister Alex Salmond, urging him to think again before proceeding with the “very dangerous legislation.”

This week Mr Maan revealed Glasgow Central Mosque’s plans to meet with the Roman Catholic Church, saying, “We will talk about how we can try to influence the government.  We don’t want them to go ahead with this. Civil partnerships are enough.  Why go further and offend people?”

Meanwhile, a new poll suggests that Prime Minister David Cameron could lose the votes of churchgoers by backing gay marriage.  

The poll, conducted by ComRes, has revealed that 83 per cent of churchgoers are opposed to Mr Cameron’s plans to rewrite the definition of marriage.

And 57 per cent said that the Prime Minister’s commitment to rewriting the definition of marriage made them less likely to vote for the Conservatives. 

In contrast, not one of the survey’s 544 respondents said that Mr Cameron’s support for the radical proposal made them more likely to vote for the party.

 

Nearly 90 per cent of those surveyed were concerned that schools would be required to teach the equal validity of same-sex and heterosexual relationships.

Last month Mr Cameron caused a storm of controversy when he declared his support for gay marriage, at his party’s annual conference.  

A public consultation on how to do this will begin next year.

The new survey also revealed that the vast majority of churchgoers have grave concerns about tampering with the definition of marriage.  

More than 90 per cent of those surveyed were concerned that clergy would have to conduct same-sex marriages against their consciences.

Nearly eighty per cent feared it would be harder to argue against ‘other novel types of relationship’ such as polygamy and 85 per cent were concerned that the value of marriage would be further undermined.

 

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