Web References

Church of the Larger Fellowship
Unitarian Universalist Perspectives on Same Sex Marriage
August 13, 2003

"We cannot let the Religious Right act as if they speak for all persons of faith when they denounce love between persons of the same sex as somehow threatening to the rest of the culture. We know it isn¹t so. But we will have to keep standing up in the public square and voicing, consistently and clearly, our commitment to the inherent worth and dignity of every person." In faith, WILLIAM G. SINKFORD President, Unitarian Universalist Association

From the July/August UU World magazine
http://www.uua.org/world/2003/04/calling.html

News: A recent article from the UUA website, with many links to follow: http://www.uua.org/news/2003/030605.html

Report: a symposium at this year's General Assembly entitled Family Values Law and Marriage in the 21st Century http://www.uua.org/ga/ga03/2028.html

Service: Motherhood and Apple Pie
Rev. Katie Lee Crane
First Parish of Sudbury
Sunday Worship May 11, 2003
http://www.uua.org/news/2003/vocabulary/crane.html

For parents: Is our Church Gay? Answering Children's Questions About Homophobia and Sexual Orientation, A Pamphlet by Meg Riley http://www.uua.org/pamphlet/3604.html

Rev. Rhett D. Baird, of the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Fayetteville, AR, officially stopped performing civil marriages by issuing this personal proclamation:

Based upon my experience, my well considered deliberations and the values which shape my life, I have come to believe that the state of Arkansas has no right to withhold the legal protections of the status of marriage to persons because of their gender. I have come to believe that the state of Arkansas has no right to say that a love that exists between two adults has no standing in law because the gender of one of the persons is not pleasing to the state. I have come to believe that love does not come into being nor thrive and grow and sustain the lives of people to please the state. The state, I believe was created and exists to serve the people - all of the people - and to promote life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness - of all its citizens.
Therefore, effective July 1, 2002, I will impose a one year moratorium on my acting as an agent on behalf of the state. During that period, I will honorably and joyfully create and officiate at religious ceremonies that honor and celebrate the love between two people, but I will not sign marriage certificates legalizing a bond that is not accessible to all persons, without regard to gender. Couples eligible for such legal sanction may choose to seek out the nearest civil office to do the duty of the state. During this self imposed moratorium and protest against what I have come to believe are unjust laws in this state on this subject, I shall function only in my ecclesiastical role as an ordained minister in the Unitarian Universalist tradition and shall respectfully refrain from acting as an agent of the state. This is a thoughtfully considered private act of conscience, a symbolic gesture of values held that must be lived out, and is not intended to represent any other person or group other than my authentic self. (from http://www.iwgonline.org/ktf/archive/2002/may/ : 8/12/03)

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Last updated June 12, 2005