Clergy and religious leaders celebrate California’s District Court decision declaring Proposition 8 to be unconstitutional. “It’s a prophetic moment when all loving families are recognized, honored and celebrated”, said Rabbi James Greene of Temple Beth Sholom and Chair of the Board of Directors for the Community of Welcoming Congregations. “This is the day that God has made, let us rejoice in it”, he continues. The Rev. Dr. Brooks Brandt of First Congregational United Church of Christ in Vancouver said, “For my church, the court’s ruling is a celebration, a moment in which our values are reflected in the policies and decisions of our country”. The Rev. Natasha Brubaker-Garrison, priest at the Episcopal Church of the Resurrection in Eugene concurs. “I am delighted by Judge Walker’s ruling. His decision lives into the spirit of our country where there is equal protection for us all.”
The Rev. Dana Worsnop, minister at Atkinson Memorial Church in Oregon City states, “As a Unitarian Universalist and as a human being, I am thrilled that more and more people are seeing more and more clearly that the right to marry who we love is a basic human right. When two people who love each other choose to marry, something new and holy arises in the world.” The Rev. Tara Wilkins, a United Church of Christ minister and executive director of the Community of Welcoming Congregations declares, “This is a victory for all those who work on the front lines to ensure equality. As a Christian, I must stand on the side of love, while insisting on justice. Civil marriage is separate from religious marriage and should not be denied for religious reasons.”
The Community of Welcoming Congregations (CWC) is an interfaith advocacy nonprofit working for the full inclusion and equality of LGBTQ persons. Currently CWC has 110 members across Oregon and SW Washington each of whom have adopted a position to be intentionally inclusive of lesbian and gay families.
