The religious case against Prop 8
Proposition 8 is about religious freedom. The recent federal court decision against the 2008 ballot initiative is a win not only for gay men and lesbians, it's also a victory for the free exercise of faith in this country.
Thousands of clergy from different traditions welcome the day when we can officiate marriages for our gay and lesbian parishioners. In the United Church of Christ and the Unitarian Universalist Association, these unions will have full denominational backing.
Many states, like California, prohibit religious leaders from sanctifying marriages that our traditions regard as legitimate and holy. This is a clear violation of the First Amendment. By denying us this right, the government prevents us from exercising our religious freedom.
Those who argue otherwise use a tortured logic. They suggest that equal marriage somehow infringes upon their liberties. Not so. No law would demand that a religious group perform marriages against its will. Equal marriage simply allows religious groups that whole-heartedly endorse those unions to do so.
Will Prop 8 be defeated by the U.S. Supreme Court? For the sake of religion in this country, it's in my prayers.
Reverend Lucas Hergert
Unitarian Universalist Church
Livermore, California