City Council may take
up gay marriage:
Pastor wants Council
to vote on his resolution
By TIM ZATZARINY Jr.
Staff Writer, from the Web, November 17, 2007
VINELAND -- With the state
Legislature preparing to tackle the issue of gay marriage, the pastor of a local
church urged City Council to pass a resolution reinforcing the traditional
definition of marriage.
The Rev. Ralph Snook, pastor of Chestnut Assembly of God on East Chestnut
Avenue, appeared before City Council on Tuesday with a sample resolution that
states in part, "it is a time-honored tradition that marriage has been
recognized as a union between a man and a woman."
Last year, New Jersey enacted legislation allowing civil unions for gays and
lesbians, giving same-sex couples the same rights as married couples.
Gay-rights advocates have pushed for the state Legislature to revisit the issue
and allow same-sex couples to have marriages instead of civil unions.
If the council approves a resolution similar to the one presented by Snook, it
would support "the goal of preserving, protecting and defending the institution
of marriage as being between one man and one woman."
Council President John Barretta said the council will discuss Snook's request at
a work session Tuesday night, and possibly vote on a resolution at its next
regular meeting Nov. 27.
Massachusetts in 2003 became the only state to approve gay marriages.
In January, Vineland Mayor Perry Barse and Millville Mayor James Quinn announced
they would stop presiding over wedding ceremonies altogether so they wouldn't
have to perform civil-unions for same-sex couples.
Both mayors cited their strong Catholicism as their reason for refusing to
perform civil unions.
tzatzariny@thedailyjournal.com
|
