Mormon Church Leadership: It's Civil Law Over Religious Doctrine on Same-Sex Marriage

Dallin Oaks, Elder in
the Mormon Church

"Despite its deep opposition to same-sex marriage, the Mormon Church is setting itself apart from religious conservatives who rallied behind a Kentucky county clerk, Kim Davis, who cited her religious beliefs as justification for refusing to grant marriage licenses to same-sex couples...

...'Office holders remain free to draw upon their personal beliefs and motivations and advocate their positions in the public square,' Elder Oaks said. 'But when acting as public officials, they are not free to apply personal convictions, religious or other, in place of the defined responsibilities of their public offices.  All government officers should exercise their civil authority according to the principles and within the limits of civil government...A county clerk's recent invoking of religious reasons to justify refusal by her office and staff to issue marriage license to same-gender couples violates this principle.'

Jonathan Rauch, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, called the speech a 'pretty big deal' that embraced compromise over conflict."

eye'm thynkin':  When the Mormon Church sounds like the voice of reason on the issue of marriage equality, I would call that testament to the Christian right's having gone completely off the cliff.

And compromise over conflict is not an idea embraced by anyone on the conservative spectrum.

Read more at The New York Times