Mexico’s Supreme Court has extended the availability of same-sex marriage nationwide following a major ruling of the country’s constitution.
The court ruled: “Any state law which considers that the purpose of marriage is procreation and/or that defines it as being celebrated between one man and one woman, is unconstitutional,” the judicial paper issued after the ruling read.
Up to now only four of Mexico’s 32 states, together with Mexico City, had made legal provision for same-sex marriage. The court’s ruling now effectively imposes a requirement on the rest to follow suit, legalising the marriage form.
Though the Catholic Bishops of Mexico have not yet issued a response to the ruling, Bishop Felipe Gallardo of Veracruz, described the court’s decision as an “aberration”.
North of the border, meanwhile, where the United States still await a Supreme Court judgement on same-sex marriage, the state of North Carolina has moved to include a conscience clause in its own marriage laws, making it possible for a registrar to opt out of any marriage form clashing with his or her deeply held religious beliefs. The law change came despite attempts by Governor Pat McCrory to prevent any opt-outs in relation to marriage ceremonies.
Further afield, Australia’s Catholic Bishops have issued a pastoral letter in defence of marriage as that between a man and woman as the country continues its own debate over same-sex unions.
“Redefining marriage…would see marriage reduced to a committed, affectionate sexual relationship between any two people. All marriages would come to be defined by intensity of emotion rather than a union founded on sexual complementarity and potential fertility. Husbands and wives, mothers and fathers, will be seen to be wholly interchangeable social constructs, as gender would no longer matter.”