same-sex marriage
Justice Department will extend benefits to same-sex couples
By Christopher Doering — February 10, 2014
(RNS) The Justice Department will instruct employees to give lawful same-sex marriages full and equal recognition to the greatest extent possible under the law. Gay marriage is currently legal in 17 states and the District of Columbia.
Church of England’s bishops defer gay marriage decision
By Trevor Grundy — January 27, 2014
CANTERBURY, England (RNS) With little more than two months to go before Britain’s first same-sex marriage, the College of Bishops issued a statement saying that "no change" to the Church of England’s teaching on marriage is proposed or envisioned.
United Methodists will try retired Yale dean Thomas Ogletree
By Renée K. Gadoua — January 17, 2014
(RNS) The trial for the Rev. Thomas Ogletree, 80, follows a bruising drama that concluded last month when the denomination defrocked a Pennsylvania pastor who was tried on the same charge.
Nigeria’s religious leaders welcome controversial anti-gay law
By Fredrick Nzwili — January 16, 2014
NAIROBI, Kenya (RNS) Christian and Muslim leaders in Nigeria welcomed a controversial law that bans same-sex marriages and imposes a 14-year jail term for homosexual relations.
Federal judge strikes down Oklahoma same-sex marriage ban
By Michael Winter — January 15, 2014
(RNS) The judge ruled that a restriction approved by the state's voters in 2004 violates the Equal Protection Clause of the U.S. Constitution.
2013 marked shifts in views on social issues
By Sarah Pulliam Bailey — December 27, 2013
(RNS) The year 2013 ushered in a number of data milestones in American public opinion on issues such as same-sex marriage and personal freedoms.
Same-sex couples shatter marriage records in Utah
By Marissa Lang — December 27, 2013
SALT LAKE CITY (RNS) In the week since a federal judge overturned Utah’s ban on same-sex marriage, the number of weddings in the state has skyrocketed, shattering records and accruing thousands of dollars for Utah’s 29 counties.
After historic ruling, Utah couple spends first Christmas as Mrs. and Mrs.
By Marissa Lang — December 26, 2013
(RNS) Christmas this year brought the warm consistency of tradition, of family and friends, of food and gifts and decorations hung with care. But it also brought the realization that in the five days since a federal judge overturned Utah’s ban on same-sex marriages, so much had changed for the state's gay and lesbian couples.
Gay couples seek court case that might reach the Supreme Court
By Richard Wolf — December 13, 2013
(RNS) Despite two landmark Supreme Court decisions in June that vastly expanded same-sex marriage rights in states from Maine to California, gay and lesbian couples in 35 states remain outside the bonds of holy matrimony. For them, the battle is ongoing.
Survey: Same-sex couples create own rules in wedding planning
By Katherine Burgess — November 19, 2013
(RNS) A survey of 916 gay and lesbian couples found that religious leaders officiated at just one in four same-sex marriages, and that only 12 percent of ceremonies were held in religious spaces.
N.J. Gov. Chris Christie won’t appeal gay marriage rulings
By Salvador Rizzo — October 21, 2013
TRENTON, N.J. (RNS) Colin Reed, a spokesman for Gov. Chris Christie, said the state Supreme Court "left no ambiguity about the unanimous court's view on the ultimate decision" on gay marriage.
Judge in N.J. same-sex marriage case has deep Catholic roots
By Thomas Zambito — October 17, 2013
BAYONNE, N.J. (RNS) Regardless of how Judge Mary Jacobson might feel personally about a subject, or what her Catholic faith might say about it, she decides cases based on the law and the facts, say those who have worked with her through the years.
Emboldened, gay marriage activists eye 50 states
By Marisol Bello — October 11, 2013
(RNS) Since June, couples have filed 23 lawsuits to end bans in 21 states; governors and state attorneys general in at least three states have refused to defend their state bans in court; and county clerks in four states have issued marriage licenses to gay couples despite laws against it.
Conservatives say censorship has increased on Facebook, iTunes
By Katherine Burgess — October 3, 2013
A panel discussion hosted by the National Religious Broadcasters considers incidents of “viewpoint censorship,” when new media companies block conservative Christian speech.
Supreme Court poised to turn right in 2013 term
By Richard Wolf — October 3, 2013
WASHINGTON (RNS) Conservative interest groups, perhaps seeing their best chance in years to advance their causes, have argued aggressively in their briefs to the court not only for favorable rulings but for overturning some of the court's time-honored precedents.