Episcopal Church allows all priests to perform same-sex marriage rites
Under a new rule, priests will be able to marry same-sex couples despite their diocesan bishops' objection—but no priest is required to preside at any wedding.
Same-sex couples will now be able to marry in their home parish even if their local bishop has moral objections to gay marriage, Episcopal Church leaders decided at their General Convention in Austin, Texas.
Under the new rule, couples can request gender-neutral marriage rites, which were approved for trial use at the church’s 2015 convention, in the church where they worship. Even if the local bishop opposes same-sex weddings, the priest of the parish can still conduct the ceremony, requesting pastoral support from a bishop in another diocese if necessary.
The approved resolution also makes it clear that “no clergy member can be forced to preside over any marriage ceremony,” the Episcopal News Service reported.
