Georgia Bishops Urge Voters To Support Marriage Amendment To State Constitution

Published: October 7, 2004

Dear Friends in Christ,

Archbishop John F. Donoghue

On November 2, along with the election for President and other federal and state officials, the people of Georgia will be asked to vote on the adoption of an amendment to the Georgia State Constitution. Amendment No. 1, which will be found on the last screen of the electronic ballot, proposes to amend the Constitution by declaring that the State of Georgia will recognize as marriage only the union of man and woman.

As your bishops, we urge you to vote YES on this amendment.

As Catholics, we recognize that marriage is a gift from our Creator. It is one of our most precious human values. A man “leaves his father and mother and clings to his wife, and the two of them become one body.” (Genesis 2:24)

Bishop J. Kevin Boland

God planned marriage as an intimate union in which spouses give themselves as equal persons, completely and lovingly, to one another. By their mutual gift of self they cooperate with God in bringing children into the world.

The Church also teaches that the valid marriage of baptized Christians is a sacrament. Jesus Christ made marriage a symbol of his love for his Church (See Ephesians 5:25-33).

Marriage in society, nevertheless, is more than a religious institution. Marriage between a man and woman is a fundamental relationship and creates the most basic building block of society. The marriage relationship between a man and woman existed long before the Georgia State Constitution, before the Church and even before the earliest books of the Bible.

Marriage between a man and woman is vital to our society not just because of the relations of the husband and wife but because that relationship has been shown across nations, cultures and times as the best environment for the procreation and nurturing of children. Our own experience, as well as countless studies, demonstrates that a family unit with a mother and father provides children with the best opportunity for spiritual and human development.

“Marriage is a basic human and social institution. Though it is regulated by civil laws and church laws, it did not originate from either the church or state but from God. Therefore, neither church nor state can alter the basic meaning and structure of marriage.

“Marriage, whose nature and purposes are established by God, can only be the union of a man and a woman and must remain such in law. In a manner unlike any other relationship, marriage makes a unique and irreplaceable contribution to the common good of society, especially through the procreation and education of children.

“The union of husband and wife becomes, over a lifetime, a great good for themselves, their family, communities, and society. Marriage is a gift to be cherished and protected.” (Excerpted from “Between Man and Woman: Questions and Answers About Marriage and Same-Sex Unions,” a 2003 publication of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishop.)

Please vote YES to Amendment No. 1 on November 2.

Sincerely yours in Christ,

Most Reverend John F. Donoghue

Archbishop of Atlanta

Most Reverend J. Kevin Boland

Bishop of Savannah