USCCB Subcommittee Chair Decries Marriage Redefinition In Rhode Island

WASHINGTON—The passage oflegislation by the Rhode Island General Assembly yesterday to redefine marriage"is a serious injustice," said Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone ofSan Francisco, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops'Subcommittee for the Promotion and Defense of Marriage.

"Themeaning of marriage cannot be redefined, because its meaning lies in our verynature. Therefore, regardless of what law is enacted, marriage remains theunion of one man and one woman – by the very design of nature, it cannot be otherwise,"he said.

Archbishop Cordileone emphasized the importance ofmarriage for children.

"Marriageis the only institution that unites a man and a woman to each other and to anychild conceived of their union. While those making great sacrifices to raisetheir children in less than ideal circumstances need and deserve our love andsupport, we cannot claim to have a just society if we do not look out for themost vulnerable among us: children. That means preserving in the law the principlethat every child deserves a mother and father united in marriage. That means supportingin our institutions and in our culture the true and unique meaning of marriage,"he said.

TheGovernor of Rhode Island signed the bill into law.

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Keywords: Archbishop SalvatoreCordileone, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, USCCB, marriage, Rhode Island

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