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Gay-rights conflicts arise when public-private line blurs RICK MALWITZ, Home News Tribune from the Web, March 14, 2004While I was speaking last week with three people in the gay community who are quite excited about the prospect of same-sex marriages becoming legal, each made the same point without my prompting. They said they are seeking civil sanction, so the government would recognize the union. They are not asking individuals to change their religious beliefs. John Campbell of Edison, who entered a civil union with his partner, Richard Harrison, in Vermont in 2000, said, "It is a civil agreement, not a religious agreement." He termed opposition "another faith-based initiative by the radical right," and said he would not want to be married in "one of those churches anyway." With Massachusetts poised to permit same-sex marriages, Campbell and Harrison plan to marry this summer, at a private home north of Boston. "I never felt we should be calling it marriage, because that brings in the whole religious thing, and churches can do whatever they want," said Harold Goldenberg of Somerset. The gay community is wise to keep the church out of the debate, considering how the world's major religions have traditionally taught against the practice of homosexuality. What would help keep religion at arm's length would be if the homosexual community would cease trying to force its beliefs on the religious community. Last week, a Seton Hall University student filed a lawsuit against the school after he was denied permission to begin a gay and lesbian group on the campus. To do so would require Seton Hall to violate its mission. In 1972 it signed onto a document called "The Catholic University in the Modern World," which included, ". . . fidelity to the Christian message as it comes to us through the Church." Seton Hall is a private Catholic university, which choses to treat a gays-and-lesbians organization differently from, say, a chess club, and is consistent with its belief. No one would expect a public university to take a similar stance. However, when a group with faith-based beliefs sought recognition at Montclair State University, a state university, it was initially rejected. Campus Crusade for Christ (a group to which I give financial support) sought to begin a chapter on the Montclair State University campus. The application was approved by the Student Government Association, but its president, Jacob Hudnut, vetoed the decision. The Associated Press reported, "Hudnut, who is gay, says Campus Crusade is intolerant and insensitive." That is his belief. By vetoing the action of the SGA, he was forcing his belief on others. Fortunately, some adults took over. On the advice of the school's attorney, as well as the office of the state attorney general, the university gave approval to the group. University official Karen Pennington told the student newspaper Friday, "As a public institution . . . MSU must protect the constitutional rights of all members of the university community." If the gay community does not want the church interfering with its agenda, it ought not interfere with the mission of groups such as Campus Crusade for Christ. Rick Malwitz's column appears Sundays and Thursdays. (732) 565-7327; e-mail rmalwitz@thnt.com (Emphasis Added) |
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