Navy chaplains will be allowed to
officiate at gay marriage and civil union ceremonies on base once
“Don't Ask, Don't Tell” is lifted, the Navy Times
reported.
The military's ban on open gay service
was repealed by Congress in December and the Pentagon has begun
training for the policy's end, which is expected before the end of
the year.
An April 13 memo from Chief of
Chaplains Rear Admiral Mark Tidd reads, in part: “Consistent with
the tenets of his or her religious organization, a chaplain may
officiate a same-sex, civil marriage.”
“[I]f the base is located in a state
where same-sex marriage is legal, then base facilities may normally
be used to celebrate the marriage,” the memo continues. “This is
true for purely religious services (e.g., a chaplain blessing a
union) or a traditional wedding (e.g., a chaplain both blessing and
conducting the ceremony).”
A spokeswoman for the Defense
Department, Eileen Lainez, told the paper that such a move would not
violate the Clinton-era Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which bans
federal agencies from recognizing the marriages of gay and lesbian
couples.
“DOMA does not limit the type of
religious ceremonies a chaplain may perform in a chapel on a military
installation,” she wrote in an email.
Social conservatives disagreed.
“Now that the ban on homosexuals in
the military is overturned, the White House is trying to enlist the
troops in its war on DOMA,” said Tony Perkins, president of the
Christian conservative Family Research Council, in
a blog post. “And if the administration won't uphold the law,
then it shouldn't surprise anyone that the president would order the
military to ignore it.”
“If the administration keeps pounding
its agenda through the military, we'll need the Navy SEALs to rescue
marriage,” he added.
Representative Todd Akin, a Republican
from Missouri, told the paper that the guidance “clearly violates
the law.”
“While a state may legalize same-sex
marriage, federal property and federal employees, like Navy
chaplains, should not be used to perform marriages that are not
recognized by federal law,” Akin said.
DOMA will block the Navy from
recognizing the marriages of gay troops, denying them housing and
spousal benefits.