USCCB president calls Supreme Court ruling on marriage 'tragic error'

USCCB president calls Supreme Court ruling on marriage 'tragic error'

USCCB president calls Supreme Court ruling on marriage 'tragic error'

By Catholic News Service

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- The president of the U.S. bishops' conference called the Supreme Court's June 26 marriage ruling "a tragic error" and he urged Catholics to move forward with faith "in the unchanging truth about marriage being between one man and one woman."

"Regardless of what a narrow majority of the Supreme Court may declare at this moment in history, the nature of the human person and marriage remains unchanged and unchangeable," said Archbishop Joseph E. Kurtz of Louisville, Kentucky.

"It is profoundly immoral and unjust for the government to declare that two people of the same sex can constitute a marriage," he said.

In a 5-4 decision, the court said states must license same-sex marriage. In the second part of the ruling, the court affirmed that every state must recognize marriages performed in other states, a question that will become moot as the first part of the opinion is enacted.

"Just as Roe v. Wade did not settle the question of abortion over 40 years ago," when it legalized abortion in the U.S. virtually on demand, Obergefell v. Hodges "does not settle the question of marriage today," Archbishop Kurtz said.

"Neither decision is rooted in the truth, and as a result, both will eventually fail," he added.

The court had several marriage cases to consider and bundled them under the title of the Ohio case, Obergefell v. Hodges. That case arose after the October 2013 death of John Arthur of Cincinnati. He and his longtime partner, Obergefell, had married earlier that year in Maryland. When the local Ohio registrar agreed to list Obergefell as the surviving spouse on Arthur's death certificate -- which is key to a range of survivor's benefits -- the state attorney general challenged the status because Ohio law bars same-sex marriages.

The other cases included: Tanco v. Haslam, the Tennessee case, and Bourke v. Beshear, the Kentucky case, which similarly challenge those states' refusal to recognize same-sex marriages performed in other jurisdictions, and DeBoer v. Snyder, the Michigan adoption case.

"The unique meaning of marriage as the union of one man and one woman is inscribed in our bodies as male and female," Archbishop Kurtz said in his statement. "The protection of this meaning is a critical dimension of the 'integral ecology' that Pope Francis has called us to promote.

"Mandating marriage redefinition across the country is a tragic error that harms the common good and most vulnerable among us, especially children. The law has a duty to support every child's basic right to be raised, where possible, by his or her married mother and father in a stable home.

Statement from Bishop Tobin – The Supreme Court and “Same-Sex Marriage”

Statement from Bishop Tobin – The Supreme Court and “Same-Sex Marriage”

A thousand courts may rule otherwise, but the very notion of “same-sex marriage” is morally wrong and a blatant rejection of God’s plan for the human family. As Pope Francis taught while serving as Archbishop in Argentina: “Same-sex marriage is not simply a political struggle, but it is an attempt to destroy God’s plan. It is a move of the ‘father of lies’ who seeks to confuse and deceive the children of God.”

Despite the current trends of our society, or perhaps because of them, the Church must redouble its commitment to proclaim and defend authentic concepts of marriage and family as we have received them from God. We will always do so, however, in a respectful, charitable and constructive manner.

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"I will willingly wear the orange jumpsuit"

Truth spoken again. A wonderful missive, words from a courageous and strong Archbishop...

June 30, 2015

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

For a long time now, I have felt that we have entered a post-Christian era in the history of western

Here in the United States, we are apparently a European “wannabe.” We have been slowly disavowing ourselves of any connection to religion and separating ourselves from any symbols which may be offensive, though they have been in existence for decades.

Part of it can be attributed to the tyranny of the minority -- one person is offended by a statue or a picture reflecting some religious symbolism and off we go to an activist court for social reconstruction -- the sensitivity of the one is imposed on the many.

Oh! But we have separation of Church and state, they say (actually only by judicial edict). There was no separation of Church and state when the parochial schools were educating the masses because government lacked the capacity to do so. There was no separation when the religious hospitals were providing care in areas the government could not or would not.  Nor when religious charities were providing for the homeless long before state welfare organizations were instituted.

Separation seems to be a concept of when we need you it’s “okay, please participate” and when we don’t “get out of our political way because we don’t need to be tainted by your religious zeal.”  Religion is treated like the intellectually challenged adult that, in less enlightened times, would be kept separate from the family for fear of embarrassment and from the social elite who might think less of them.

As Catholics, we have weathered the governmental and societal bashing that has taken place for 2,000 years. We survived the Roman Empire, the monarchies, the “isms,” of Nazism, communism and self-proclaimed “rationalists.” And we will survive the rejection of our own society and its continued attempt to muffle our voice and isolate us from the decision-making table. We will pay a price. But, we will not do so without preaching and teaching the truth.

The recent decision of the Supreme Court legalizing same sex marriage is sad, because it once again takes upon itself the redefinition of the word. This time it’s “marriage.” The definitions of words seem to not matter to the court. The simple truth is that marriage is between a man and a woman. Why? Because from the dawn of civilization men and women were joined together to perpetuate our species. Marriage constitutes a family where individuals are raised, given an identity and form the basic building block of our society.

In our brave new world, we can generate human beings in a test tube -- no one need know who the father is. A surrogate can be used, as would an incubator, in order to fulfill the desire for a child by two males. The terms mother and father are now subject to redefinition. Perhaps it will take a village to raise the children, especially if they will not have identifiable role models. But, we have permitted same sex individuals to claim marriage as a right at the cost of family deconstruction and role model redefinition.

I haven’t even broached the subject that God ordained marriage. From the beginning he created them, males and females were told to go forth and multiply. The Church has established marriage as a sacrament and it is evident in its teachings how essential the understanding of marriage between a man and a woman is to the faith.

I know that you have often heard the term “cafeteria” Catholic. This is a Catholic that picks and chooses what is convenient in the teachings and ignores the rest. The Supreme Court decision was made by a court composed of six Catholics, with the majority opinion rendered by Catholic judge, Justice Anthony Kennedy (supported by another Catholic, Justice Sonia Sotomayor). Perhaps, he remembered another Kennedy claiming that he would not be guided by the pope or the teachings of the Church once he is elected president. The four dissenters were Catholic with an excellent dissenting opinion rendered by Justice Antonin Scalia (concurring Chief Justice Roberts, Justice Thomas and Justice Alito).
 

civilization. There is almost an embarrassment about being a Christian and a denial of the roots that Christianity has provided in the development of our society. In the European society, the Euro community refused to acknowledge the historical significance of Christianity in the development of European society. The pope made an impassioned plea for that recognition, but it fell on deaf ears. Now we have a European community that is clinging to its roots, as it is slowly being destroyed by its own hubris.

This was not the first time that a terrible decision was influenced or rendered by a Catholic on the Supreme Court.  Chief Justice Tawney in the Dred Scott decision actually inferred that a slave, a man, a human being, was just a piece of chattel and must be returned to the owner. This decision was the seed of Civil War and the decision of the court to define a man as property. And Justice Brennan, the only Catholic on the high court, influenced the Court in the Roe v Wade decision, voting with the majority. This decision denied any rights to the child in the womb which has led to the destruction of more than 50 million lives since 1973 (read “The Brethren: Inside the Supreme Court” by Bob Woodward and Scott Armstrong).

We will not be assuaged from what the Church teaches and I believe it calls for even greater courage in the face of this rejection of truth. Ever the social critic, Cardinal Francis George may be right when he said that he will die in his bed, his successor will die in jail and the one who follows his successor will die a martyr in the public square. He envisioned the social upheaval in our society as a mounting persecution of the Church. I will willingly wear the orange jumpsuit [my emphasis], if it means standing up for the truth and the Catholic faith.

I guess one doesn’t have to worry whether or not any Catholic judge or Catholic elected official would be compelled to follow the teachings of his or her faith. Unfortunately for some, it’s just a window dressing that can change with the seasons (political pressure, popular opinions and the polls). That’s a sad commentary on the effect of faith because so much truth and goodness (dignity of the human being) is found in the richness of a faith that mandates us to LOVE ONE ANOTHER.

Most Reverend Jerome E. Listecki
Archbishop of Milwaukee