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One of these days, Weblog will be able to highlight an item that has absolutely nothing to do with homosexuality. But what's news is news …

British Columbia court joins Ontario in allowing same-sex marriage
"And now the regular book says the man and woman may kiss," United Church minister Tim Stevenson, a homosexual member of the Vancouver City Council, said during the marriage of Tom Graff and Antony Porcino. "The two men may kiss."

Within an hour of the British Columbia Court of Appeal's decision yesterday to lift a ban on same-sex marriages, churches in the province were concluding their ceremonies.

In May the British Columbia court had ruled that banning same-sex marriages was unconstitutional, and ordered the Canadian government to change the definition of marriage to the union of "two persons to the exclusion of all others." However, it gave the government until July 12, 2004, to change its laws, and put a moratorium on gay weddings in the meantime.

The Ontario Court of Appeal's ruling last month that immediately changed that province's definition of marriage means the suspension was no longer necessary, and in fact harmful, the court ruled yesterday. "It is … apparent that any further delay in implementing the remedies will result in an unequal application of the law between Ontario and British Columbia," it said.

"That's two provinces down, and may they all fall quickly like dominoes now," Jane Hamilton, one of the lesbians involved in the B.C. lawsuit, told The Globe and Mail of Toronto.

That's precisely what conservative religious groups in Canada are worried about. Upset that the government will not appeal the Ontario Court of Appeal's decision, two coalitions have asked the Supreme Court to hear the case.

"We believe the Ontario Court of Appeal decision is deeply flawed and must face the scrutiny of the country's highest court," Bruce Clemenger, president of the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada, says in a press release. "We are dismayed that the Ontario Court of Appeal would declare that heterosexual marriage, an institution which has served humankind for millennia, is unconstitutional, discriminatory and, by implication, contrary to Canadian values."

The Evangelical Fellowship of Canada is part of the Interfaith Coalition on Marriage, a partnership with the Catholic Civil Rights League, the Islamic Society of North America, and the Ontario Conference of Catholic Bishops. The other petitioning group, the Association for Marriage and the Family in Ontario, is made up of Canadian advocacy organizations, such as Focus on the Family Canada.

"Quite frankly, this is action the federal government should be taking," said Focus Vice President Derek Rogusky says. "However, given that they have abdicated their leadership and ignored the will of the public, we have no choice but to step in and appeal this fundamental issue to the Supreme Court of Canada."

Whether the two groups have standing to appeal is a matter of some debate. They were both "party intervenors," which grants them more standing than if they were "friends of the court," but less than if they were one of the main parties in the case.

More on same-sex marriage:

• Minister's ouster may split Presbyterians | A Mount Auburn minister's ouster over marrying same-sex couples could become a turning point for the Presbyterian Church (USA) in its debate on gay issues (Associated Press)
  
  
• On gay rights and commitments | Over time, the legal and cultural barriers to same-sex marriage will properly dissolve (Editorial, Chicago Tribune)
  
  

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July (Web-only) 2003, Vol. 47