Kalamazoo Bishop Paul J. Bradley has
criticized a federal judge's ruling striking down Michigan's nearly
10-year ban on gay marriage.
Gay and lesbian couples started
marrying on Saturday, one day after U.S. District Court Judge Bernard
Friedman declared the state's ban invalid.
(Related: Gay
couples begin marrying in Michigan.)
“The decision handed down today by
Federal District Court Judge Bernard Friedman in the case of DeBoer
vs. Snyder is unfortunate and regrettable,” Bradley
said in a written statement. “With the stroke of a pen, the
meaning of marriage, one of society’s most sacred institutions and
the very foundation of the family, has been redefined in our state.
As a result of this decision, the amendment to the Michigan
constitution, which reflected the understanding of the majority of
the citizens of this State, and which was designed to protect the
definition of marriage as between one man and one woman, has been
undone by judicial decision.”
“No matter how the courts or other
secular institutions choose to attempt to refashion such a
foundational institution of society as marriage, our Catholic faith
consistently upholds the understanding, rooted in Natural law and
Divine design, that marriage is a lifelong partnership of love and
fidelity between one man and one woman, ordered for the mutual
support of the spouses and the procreation of children if possible.
A couple whose marriage is blessed and made holy through the
Sacrament of Matrimony reflects the saving love of Jesus for His
Bride, the Church.
“As the merit of this case continues
to be argued, it provides us the opportunity to proclaim both the
Catholic Church’s position against unjust discrimination aimed at
all persons, regardless of their sexual orientation, as well as the
sacredness of traditional marriage. While our faith teaches us to
treat individuals with same-sex attraction with respect, compassion
and sensitivity, we also are called to defend the divine institution
of marriage between one man and one woman.”