Another “yes” to gay marriage

The bill allowing for the legalization of same sex marriage in England and Wales has received the green light of the House of Lords, while the proposal to reject the measure was voted down 390 votes to 148. Despite almost 700 thousand signatures of protest gathered by "Marriage Coalition" in recent months, the regulation strongly supported by Cameron, even despite the opposition of a large number of MPs from his own party, continues its course of approval.Catholic amendments. The law that could lead to celebrate the first homosexual marriages during the summer is up for discussion in Upper House commissions where the Catholic Church proposed a set of amendments in mid-June. If the latter are rejected the "bill" will receive a "royal assent", while if the amendments receive a green light, the bill will be submitted to the House of Commons for adoption. In a document released before the vote to Parliament, Catholic Primate Vincent Nichols and archbishop Peter Smith said that with the new law, "openness to children, and with it the responsibility on fathers and mothers to remain together to care for children born into their family unit, is no longer central to society’s understanding of that institution". The bishops are concerned that schools run by the Catholic Church could be forced "to promote and support such marriage". This very anxiety is shared also by the secular world, considering that 40 thousand teachers said in a survey that they don’t want to incorporate gay marriages into their lessons. The bishops asked to change the law to ensure that "citizens are not discriminated if they express opinions against gay marriage", "to provide adequate protection for individuals or religious organisations with conscientious objections to same sex marriage" and to ensure that "religious organizations are not penalized in any way if they refuse to celebrate gay marriage". The concern of Anglican bishops. The concern of Catholic bishops is shared by the bishops of the "Church of England" who in a meeting with parliamentarians warned that "young Christians and public officials will be forced to choose between their conscience and career on the issue of same-sex marriages". 500 imams have also accused the government of attacking "the basis of family life". Anglican Primate Justin Welby during the debate in the Upper House strongly condemned the law. Rev. Justin Welby defended traditional marriage, which, he said, is fundamental for the existence of society. The Archbishop warned that the bill creates confusion on the grounds of "a legitimate demand of equality" which should not mean "uniformity, failing to understand that two things can be equal but different". "The result is confusion. Marriage is abolished, redefined and recreated" while "the family in its normal sense predating the state and as our base community of society is weakened", the Archbishop said. For Andrea Minichiello Williams, director of "Christian Concern", one of the most active pro-life movements, "there is no mandate for this law which didn’t previously exist in the program presented to the Queen last year for the opening of parliament. It’s failed recognition by parliament is reason for major concern".