The U.S. bishops' Administrative Committee has voted to give
general support to a Federal Marriage Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
The committee, comprised of 47 bishops from 14 regions, took the action Tuesday
during its annual meeting. The statement follows.
* * *
Promote, Preserve, Protect Marriage
Statement of the Administrative Committee United States Conference of Catholic
Bishops
September 9, 2003
The Catholic Church believes and teaches that marriage is a faithful,
exclusive, and lifelong union between one man and one woman, joined as husband
and wife in an intimate partnership of life and love. Marriage exists so that
the spouses might grow in mutual love and, by the generosity of their love,
bring children into the world and serve life fully.
Moreover, we believe the natural institution of marriage has been blessed and
elevated by Christ Jesus to the dignity of a sacrament. In this way, the love
of husband and wife becomes a living image of the way in which the Lord
personally loves his people and is united with them.
God is the author of marriage. It is both a relationship of persons and an
institution in society. However, it is not just any relationship or simply
another institution. We believe that, in the divine plan, marriage has its
proper meaning and achieves its purposes.
Therefore, it is our duty as pastors and teachers -- a responsibility we share
with the Christian faithful and with all persons of good will -- to promote,
preserve, and protect marriage as it is willed by God, as generations have
understood and lived it, and as it has served the common good of society.
To promote, preserve, and protect marriage today requires, among other things,
that we advocate for legislative and public policy initiatives that define and
support marriage as a unique, essential relationship and institution. At a time
when family life is under significant stress, the principled defense of
marriage is an urgent necessity to ensure the flourishing of persons, the
well-being of children, and the common good of society.
Our defense of marriage must focus primarily on the importance of marriage, not
on homosexuality or other matters. The Church's teaching about the dignity of
homosexual persons is clear. They must be accepted with respect, compassion and
sensitivity. Our respect for them means we condemn all forms of unjust discrimination,
harassment or abuse. Equally clear is the Church's teaching about the meaning
of sexual relations and their place only within married life.
What are called "homosexual unions," because they do not express full
human complementarity and because they are inherently non-procreative, cannot
be given the status of marriage.
Recently, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith issued a statement
emphatically opposing the legalization of homosexual unions. Bishop Wilton D.
Gregory, President of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, welcomed this
statement and further articulated our own conviction that such
"equivalence not only weakens the unique meaning of marriage; it also
weakens the role of law itself by forcing the law to violate the truth of
marriage and family life as the natural foundation of society and
culture."
We call on Catholics and other persons of good will to join with us in
advancing this positive view of the importance of marriage for children and for
society, and to defend these principles and the institution of marriage. This
is especially important when popular culture, media and entertainment often
undermine or ignore the essential role of marriage and promote equivalence
between marriage and homosexual relationships.
We will do this in our teaching and preaching, but also in our public policy
advocacy at the state and national levels and in the important dialogue about
how best to protect marriage and the common good in the U.S. Constitution and
in our society as a whole. We offer general support for a Federal Marriage
Amendment to the U.S. Constitution as we continue to work to protect marriage
in state legislatures, the courts, the Congress and other appropriate forums.
Thus, we strongly oppose any legislative and judicial attempts, both at state
and federal levels, to grant same-sex unions the equivalent status and rights
of marriage -- by naming them marriage, civil unions or by other means.