A few years ago, a pastor acquaintance of mine made headlines
when, in an act of solidarity with gays and lesbians, he renounced his
state-granted authority to perform weddings. Other pastors have made similar moves.
This strikes me as an elegant and sensible approach: couples, whether
same- or different-sex, are free to have a commitment ceremony at the
The New Jersey state senate has voted down a bill to legalize same-sex marriage, prompting a promise from gay-rights advocates to take their campaign to the courts. The final tally on January 7 was 20–14 with three abstentions. It reflected a dramatic shift in the state’s political landscape since gay-marriage supporter Gov. Jon Corzine lost his bid for reelection to Republican Chris Christie in November. Christie came out strongly against the bill, emboldening opponents of same-sex marriage and drawing undecided senators to the Republican fold.