FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 8, 2008
CATHOLIC BISHOPS PRAISE EFFORTS TO PROTECT MARRIAGE IN PENNSYLVANIA
HARRISBURG (Feb. 8) – The Pennsylvania Catholic Conference (PCC) today praised Senator Michael Brubaker of Lancaster and the 16 co-sponsors who join him in introducing Senate Bill 1250 – The Pennsylvania Marriage Protection Amendment.
“Marriage is the foundation of the family. The family, in turn, is the basic unit of society. Thus, marriage is a personal relationship with public significance,” said Dr. Robert J. O’Hara, Jr., Executive Director of PCC. “Marriage is being renamed and redefined by courts in states around us to include something other than the union between one man and one woman. Pennsylvania cannot avoid this debate. Senate Bill 1250 starts the process that will allow the voters of Pennsylvania to decide the fate of marriage here.”
Marriage amendment proponents say without this amendment, a fundamental change in the definition of marriage could be forced upon the citizens of Pennsylvania which will deprive the timeless institution of marriage of its unique and special status. Furthermore, they cite numerous studies that prove the marital relationship between one man and one woman is the most effective mechanism for encouraging people to make the commitment which creates the best atmosphere for children.
“Certainly not all families meet this ideal,” added O’Hara. “But from a public policy perspective we must stand for what is best for the common good. Our society already suffers from growing rates of divorce, single parent households and unplanned pregnancies. Granting status to something that is the ‘functional equivalent’ to marriage is really just revoking the status of traditional marriage. We cannot afford to have marriage redefined. In these troubled times, we must work to rebuild the family, not give up on it entirely. We will not improve our communities by diluting marriage even further.”
The Pennsylvania Catholic Conference is the public affairs agency of Pennsylvania Catholic Bishops.
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