About the CLGS Marriage Project

The question of marriage involves a complex history of legal, cultural and religious issues. In the last half of 2003 it has also quickly become one of the most contentious political issues in American society. Even as we live with the official separation of church and state in this country, religious discourse continues to shape the debate over the right of lesbian and gay people to enjoy the benefits and responsibilities of marriage.

As columnist Andrew Sullivan has noted, the proposed federal marriage ammendment (FMA) to the U.S. Constitution, which President Bush has recently endorsed, represents the greatest assault on gay and lesbian rights in American history. Sadly, the movement for such an amendment is fueled by religious rhetoric and supported by religious organizations. The claim, for example, that marriage is a "sacrament" and therefore ought to be reserved for the relationship between a man and a woman betrays the complex history of marriage in the church and in Western society as a whole. It also obscures the legal and civic implications of this debate. Given this political and cultural landscape, working for the freedom to marry necessarily involves clear and creative thinking about the religious history and the religious ideas which inform the institution of marriage.

The CLGS Marriage Project approaches these issues by providing a variety of resources for communities of faith, LGBT activists and the news media. Here you will find materials on the history of marriage in Christian traditions, talking points for understanding the civil rights involved in marriage, liturgical and theological resources for engaging this issue in faith communities and links to denominational and other organizational resources for sorting through the implications of this debate for our religious and civic institutions.

In this Marriage Project, CLGS engages two interrelated tasks: 1) to call communities of faith to social action for the freedom to marry as a matter of civil rights; and 2) to inform and enrich the theological conversation about marriage in our religious institutions.

Civil Rights and Religious Rites

In the United States the institution of marriage grants over 1,000 federal legal benefits to married couples, benefits which deal with such issues as property inheritance, hospital visitation, the adoption and custody of children and immigration, to name but a few. Excluding lesbian and gay families from these benefits is a violation of fundamental civil rights and, clearly, working for the freedom to marry is a matter of social justice. Securing these civil rights for lesbian and gay people would in no way compel religious institutions to celebrate their relationships with liturgies or other rites of union. Churches, synagogues and other communities of faith would still retain their freedom to decide this question on their own. At the same time, the long history of religious advocacy for social justice in this country provides ample religious reasons for communities of faith to work for the freedom to marry for lesbian and gay couples.

The CLGS Marriage Project provides a way to understand this fundamental distinction between civil rights and religious rites.

Stable Families and Religious Practice

While some communities of faith will want to engage the question of marriage politically and for reasons of social justice, others will want to explore further the theology and spirituality of marriage and the religious implications of celebrating same-sex relationships. The meaning of "family" and of committed, loving relationships marked by fidelity involves fundamental religious convictions. Including gay and lesbian couples in the conversation about marriage and family prompts significant theological reflection on sexuality, gender, and erotic commitments.

The CLGS Marriage Project provides theological materials for exploring the significance of marriage in religious institutions and for equipping communities of faith for reflecting on the intersections of family and religious practice.

Call to Action and Conversation

The Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies in Religion and Ministry supports the freedom to marry for lesbian and gay couples as a matter of social justice and for the purpose of securing for lesbian and gay people the same civil rights enjoyed by all Americans. CLGS also acknowledges the conflicted history of marriage and the desire of some LGBT people to configure their relationships and families without participating in the institution of marriage.

The CLGS Marriage Project provides resources for enriching this ongoing conversation in communities of faith and in our society more generally about this critical issue. CLGS also invites and welcomes feedback about the Marriage Project as we seek to broaden this conversation, clarify the issues at hand and reclaim religious faith as a resource for social justice.