Australian Catholics’ Statement of Support for Marriage Equality:
Australian Catholics Support Marriage Equality
We are Catholic Australians from many different cultural and community backgrounds.
We join in solidarity with our Catholic brothers and sisters in Ireland, Argentina, Spain, France, Luxembourg, Uruguay, Canada, Belgium, Portugal, Mexico City (plus Chihuahua, Coahuila, Guerrero and Quintana Roo) and the United States in proudly supporting civil marriage equality.
Polling shows that 67% of Australian Catholics strongly support marriage equality (Source: Crosby/Textor, July 2014).
We believe too many LGBTIQ people live hidden lives. Too many of our young people, in particular, suffer in silence. We want to shine a light. We want our children, our brothers and sisters, our friends, partners and family – Catholic or otherwise – to share in the benefits of civil marriage.
We want LGBTIQ parents to be free to offer their children the same stability and protections that the children of heterosexual couples enjoy.
We believe in family. We believe in love. We believe that LGBTIQ people should be able to marry.
We note the secular nature of Australian marriage law. We believe in the separation of Church and State. We are aware that the Marriage Act allows people of many different religions, and none, to marry.
Marriage equality in Australia will reform civil marriage. There will be no change to Catholic sacraments or traditions as a result of civil marriage equality.
We note that the Episcopal Church in the United States (Anglican Communion) recently voted to bless same sex marriages. We recognise that some of our sister churches and other religious communities in Australia want to marry LGBTIQ people.
We believe that all Australians should experience religious freedom, including those who want to conduct marriages for LGBTIQ people.
We invite those opposed to reform to engage in further education, dialogue and discernment and, ultimately, to respect the wishes of most Australians, Catholics included.
We look forward to the day when all adult Australians, regardless of their gender, can marry the person they love.
✙ Australian Catholics For Equality ✙ 