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Tag: same-sex marriage

AUSTRALIA-GAY-RIGHTS-SOCIAL-MARRIAGE

Defeated: Sinn Féin Gay Marriage Proposal Decisively Voted Down

A Sinn Féin proposal to support gay marriage, submitted to one of Northern Ireland’s largest district councils, has been comprehensively defeated.  The motion was rejected before any debate could take place. Sinn Féin members wanted the council to support same-sex marriage nationally.

AP Photo/J Pat Carter

Board: Judges Can’t Use Freedom of Religion to Avoid Performing Same-Sex Marriages

Citing the judicial oath of office to “support the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of Ohio,” the opinion states, “A judge who is willing to perform marriages of only opposite-sex couples because of his or her personal, moral, or religious beliefs may be viewed as possessing a bias or prejudice against a specific class or group of people based on sexual orientation.”

JUAN MABROMATA/AFP/Getty Images

Pope’s Popularity Plummets Among Americans

From his election in April 2013, Pope Francis had steadily gained approval among US citizens, starting at a modest 58 percent and slowly but inexorably climbing to 76 percent in February 2014 and culminating in a high of 78 percent at the end of that year. The moral capital Francis had built up seems to have fallen precipitously in recent months, and his approval rating now languishes at just 59 percent, barely more than what it was just after his election.

Catholic Archbishop Charles J. Chaput answers questions following a news conference on July 20, 2011 in Denver, Colorado. Chaput was announced Tuesday as the Archbishop-designate for the diocese of Philadelphia, one of the country's largest dioceses in the United States. The church in Philadelphia is still reeling from a sex abuse scandal which resulted in the indictment of four priests and a parochial school teacher. Chaput is due to take up his new post in September.

Philly Archbishop Defends School Decision to Fire Married Lesbian Teacher

In a statement Monday, the archbishop likened the decision to the principle of “truth in advertising,” saying that schools describing themselves as Catholic “take on the responsibility of teaching and witnessing the Catholic faith in a manner true to Catholic belief. There’s nothing complicated or controversial in this. It’s a simple matter of honesty.”