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  • June 14, 2013
    Opponents seek to weaken equal marriage bill

    As a law to allow equal marriage in England and Wales reaches committee stage in the House of Lords, those most strongly opposed are still trying to weaken or block it. Despite large majorities for the Marriage (Same Sex) Couples Bill in the Lords and earlier House of Commons, some peers have put forward amendments which would delay or undermine marriage equality.

  • June 8, 2013
    Church of England’s stance on marriage and sexuality still unclear

    Some people may be understandably confused about the Church of England’s position on same-sex partnerships and equal marriage. Official statements, the publicly-voiced views of senior clergy and broader opinions among church members point in different directions. Part of this is to do with realism, but shifts in understanding also play a part.

  • June 6, 2013
    Church of England bishops end resistance to equal marriage

    Church of England bishops have given up trying to block equal marriage in England and Wales. Though several spoke and voted against the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill in the House of Lords, this bid was heavily defeated. Many church members, including some bishops, support marriage equality, though others are strongly opposed.

  • June 4, 2013
    Christians divided as Lords back equal marriage Bill

    The House of Lords has backed a Bill to allow same-sex couples in England and Wales to marry, by 390 votes to 148. After a long debate in which Christians argued for and against the Marriage (Same-Sex Couples) Bill, a bid by opponents to block a second reading was heavily defeated.

  • June 4, 2013
    Peers back marriage equality and reject 'disinformation'

    Members of the House of Lords have voted by more than two to one to back government plans for same-sex marriages in England and Wales.

  • June 4, 2013
    Confusions in the parliamentary marriage debate

    The highly important parliamentary discussion of marriage law and equality continues today (4 June 2013), and Ekklesia will be commenting further as details develop.

  • June 3, 2013
    Parliament’s equal marriage debates reveal churches divided

    Some Christian MPs strongly support marriage equality while others are strongly against it. In the UK and beyond, parliamentary debates on celebrating same-sex partnerships have revealed that – whatever top clerics or elders say – opinion within the churches is divided, says Savitri Hensman, reporting and commenting on the religious and theological views being expressed in parliament.

  • February 25, 2013
    Beyond Belief: Islam and homosexuality discussion

    As the Bill to allow same-sex marriage makes its way through the UK Parliament, BBC religion commentator and broadcaster Ernie Rea and guests on the Radio 4 'Beyond Belief' programme (4.30pm, Monday 25 February 2013) will be discuss whether homosexuality is compatible with Islam, and related questions.

  • February 5, 2013
    Marriage, union or contract? The flawed ResPublica case against equality

    In the run-up to a parliamentary debate on 5 February 2013, the thinktank ResPublica has published a paper opposing equal marriage. The authors, Roger Scruton and Phillip Blond, both well-known in Conservative circles, appear to argue that allowing same-sex as well as opposite-sex couples to marry undermines Western civilisation, says Ekklesia associate Savitri Hensman. The paper makes some interesting points, but its case is ultimately flawed and unreliable on practical, theological, historical and legal grounds.

  • January 25, 2013
    Better... but the government is still in a mess over marriage

    The UK government's culture secretary, Maria Miller, gave a rather faltering performance on BBC Radio 4's flagship 'Today' programme this morning, answering questions -- or, rather, trying to avoid them -- about the Marriage (Same-Sex Couples) Bill.