Archbishop Wuerl: Change Language of Same-sex Marriage Bill To Protect Religious Freedom

November 20, 2009

In an irenic Washington Post op-ed, Archbishop Donald Wuerl of Washington called upon city council members to change the language in impending same-sex marriage legislation so that Catholic Charities could continue to offer adoption and foster care services without compromising Catholic moral teaching.

“While we do not agree with the council on redefining marriage, we recognize that it is firmly committed to opening marriage to homosexual couples,” the archbishop writes. “We are asking that new language be developed that more fairly balances different interests-- those of the city to redefine marriage and those of faith groups so that they can continue to provide services without compromising their deeply held religious teachings and beliefs.”

He continues:

Under the bill, religious organizations would be exempt from participating in ceremonies or from teaching about same-sex marriage in religion classes and retreats in accord with their faith beliefs, but they would be required to recognize and promote same-sex marriage everywhere else, including in employment policies, and adoption and foster-care policies, against their beliefs.

So what does this mean?

The archdiocese and Catholic Charities are committed to continuing to provide services in the District. Despite the headlines, there has been no threat or ultimatum to end services, just a simple recognition that the new requirements by the city for religious organizations to recognize same-sex marriages in their policies could restrict our ability to provide the same level of services as we do now. This is so because the District requires Catholic Charities to certify its compliance with city laws when applying for contracts and grants. This includes contracts for homeless services, mental health services, foster care and more. Since Catholic Charities cannot comply with city mandates to recognize and promote same-sex marriages, the city would withhold contracts and licenses.

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