Interesting article that sheds light on a couple of states where the Catholic Church seems to be reversing their hard stand against gay marriage:

• Roman Catholic Church of New Hampshire endorsed civil unions bill on March 19, just two days prior to the state legislature’s vote
• Roman Catholic Church of Maine ceased all external opposition to this year’s marriage equality ballot campaign

Oh, but don’t you worry! That’s not the full story. If you wander over to CatholicNH.org, you’ll see the broader story:

The Diocese of Manchester consistently has opposed legislation that would establish civil unions. However, the [civil unions bill] falls into a category of legislation which the US Bishops have previously considered: bills in civil law which may not reflect the fullness of the Church’s teaching, but which nonetheless provide an “incremental improvement” in the current law and a “step toward full restoration of justice.”

So, essentially what the Catholic Church of New Hampshire is saying is this:

Providing a committed and loving gay couple a Civil Union is far better than allowing them to get married. And while it’s only an “incremental improvement” we’ll keep fighting until those gay people have no rights, just like it was before. That’s what it means to have a “full restoration of justice!”

Yeah, no dice.

I’ve said this before and I’ll reiterate now: I don’t mean to speak out against any one group on this blog, but the Catholic Church continues to come out against marriage equality time and time again and it almost feels like now they’re just being mean. With that said, I was raised Catholic and have many Catholic friends that love me and don’t hold these same views. That’s why I will not lump all Catholics (or any religion, for that matter) together in one bucket. But it is important that we all know how these religious organizations are attempting to influence the governing body of the land.

And remember, it’s liberty and justice for all.