Share with others: |
|
Tweet |
Homosexual couples in Denmark have won the right to get married in any church they choose, even though nearly one third of the country's priests have said they will refuse to carry out the ceremonies.
The country's parliament voted through the new law on same-sex marriage by a large majority, making it mandatory for all churches to conduct gay marriages.
Under the law, individual priests can refuse to carry out the ceremony, but the local bishop must arrange a replacement for their church.
The far-Right Danish People's Party mounted a strong campaign against the new law, which nonetheless passed with the support of 85 of the country's 111 MPs.
Same-sex marriages were previously introduced in some other countries including Sweden, Norway, Argentina, Canada and South Africa. In Belgium, Holland, Spain, and Portugal homosexual couples can be wed at city hall.
Same-sex marriages are recognized by a few states in the United States, though not by the federal government. But polls show growing acceptance of same-sex nuptials and Obama has turned gay marriage into a 2012 election issue, saying he believes same-sex couples should be able to wed. His conservative Republican opponent Mitt Romney disagrees.
Read several authors' thoughts on papal Rome's history.
This article highlights quotes from historical and Catholic sources proving the Papacy's aggressive nature.
An Italian mystic. A minister to a British king. An Augustine monk. A Swiss farmer's boy. What do these men have in common? They were used by God in powerful ways to bring about the Protestant Reformation. Enter into the lives of these ordinary people with extraordinary stories.
Inspiration for these articles comes from Gideon and Hilda Hagstoz' Heroes of the Reformation