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Massachusetts Passes Bill Allowing Same-Sex "Marriage" for Out-of-Staters

By Tim Waggoner

BOSTON, July 30, 2008 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Today, the Massachusetts House voted 119-36 to pass a bill that will strike down a 1913 law blocking out of state homosexuals from "marrying" in the state. 

"With that protective barrier removed, out-of-state same-sex couples who marry here will sue to seek recognition in their home states-creating a flood of costly lawsuits and further eroding the people's right to define marriage democratically," said the Massachusetts Family Institute in a press release.

"Now, just after California allowed out-of-state same-sex couples to marry, it appears our legislators are suffering from 'gay marriage envy' in pushing to repeal this protective measure," said Kris Mineau, President of the Massachusetts Family Institute. "But their arrogance and folly are doing terrible harm to marriage laws across the country and eroding the people's right to define marriage."

"We're going to be here until the cows go home," he said. "We're going to continue to advocate what we believe is right and what is in the best interest of our society and our children, and when the time comes that this Legislature starts waking up to reality, our voice will be there."

According to the Boston Globe, Representative John Lepper said permitting a marriage that is illegal in other states would "create a relationship and then set it adrift to settle in a disapproving state."

He alluded to one Rhode Island homosexual couple that married in Massachusetts and is now seeking a divorce in Rhode Island - a "legal nightmare" that will only become more prevalent with the removal of the 1913 law.

"They can't divorce in Rhode Island because the law does not recognize (the marriage)," Lepper said. "They can't divorce in Massachusetts because there is a one-year residency requirement for filing."

Cardinal Sean P. O'Malley of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston and the state's three other Catholic bishops have voiced their opposition to the bill in a joint statement.

"Today, we reiterate our belief that marriage is a faithful, exclusive, lifelong union of a man and a woman joined in an intimate community of love and life," said the statement. "Across times, cultures, and many different religious beliefs, marriage between a man and a woman is the foundation of the family and society. Marriage is a personal relationship with public significance."

See related coverage:

Massachusetts Gets Ready to Repeal Law Forbidding Same-Sex "Marriage" to Out-of-Staters
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2008/jul/08071115.html

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