We also emphasize, as did the district court, that today’s decision relates solely to civil marriage. See Kitchen, 961 F. Supp. 2d at 1214 (“[T]he court notes that its decision does not mandate any change for religious institutions, which may continue to express their own moral viewpoints and define their own traditions about marriage.”). Plaintiffs must be accorded the same legal status presently granted to married couples, but religious institutions remain as free as they always have been to practice their sacraments and traditions as they see fit. Assuming of course, those sacraments and traditions dont include things like sticking a knife in the heart of a distraught spouse over the right to be by the side of their spouse in a hospital, let alone make medical decisions for them if they cant.
Posted on: Wed, 25 Jun 2014 19:10:45 +0000