As
attorneys
and
lawmakers
fight
over
the
impact
of
Amendment
1
in
Georgia’s
courts,
the
debate
over
the
proposed
gay
marriage
ban
is
heating
up
across
the
state.
In
the
countdown
to
the
Nov.
2
vote,
churches
and
religious
denominations
are
speaking
out
on
both
sides
of
the
issue.
The
Christian
Coalition
of
Georgia
led
lobbying
for
the
amendment
in
the
General
Assembly
and
is
urging
pastors
to
incorporate
pro-amendment
messages
into
their
sermons.
The
head
of
the
Roman
Catholic
Church
in
Atlanta,
Archbishop
John
Donoghue,
recently
urged
parishioners
to
support
the
gay
marriage
ban
in
a
letter
also
signed
by
Bishop
J.
Kevin
Boland
of
Savannah.
Many
black
pastors
throughout
the
state
are
also
using
their
pulpit
to
advocate
for
the
amendment,
according
to
Rev.
D.L.
Foster,
a
pastor
at
Restoration
Church
in
College
Park.
“There’s
a
lot
of
behind
the
scenes
activity
and
a
very
strong
resolve
among
African-American
pastors
in
the
greater
Atlanta
area
to
insure
that
the
people
in
their
churches
and
their
circle
of
influence
vote
righteously,”
said
Foster,
who
identifies
as
an
ex-gay
man.
“It
does
more
when,
on
Sunday,
you
go
and
sit
in
church
and
hear
your
pastor
say
this
is
God’s
word
on
this
issue
—
it
means
much
more
than
some
rally,”
he
added.
Foster,
Rev.
Creflo
Dollar
of
World
Changers
Ministry
in
College
Park
and
Rev.
Wellington
Boone
of
The
Father’s
House
in
Atlanta
were
among
a
host
of
black
pastors
who
recently
tried
to
lobby
the
Congressional
Black
Caucus
to
pass
a
federal
constitutional
amendment
banning
gay
marriage.
The
caucus
refused
to
meet
with
the
pastors.
The
Georgia
Baptist
Convention
is
also
mobilizing
its
affiliates
to
vote
for
the
ban,
and
is
preparing
to
launch
a
media
campaign
in
the
final
weeks
before
the
vote.
Worshipers
will
undoubtedly
be
influenced
by
the
messages
coming
from
their
pastors,
whether
sermons
specifically
address
Amendment
1
or
deal
with
the
general
topics
of
homosexuality
and
marriage,
according
to
Tim
Renick,
director
of
the
religious
studies
program
at
Georgia
State
University.
“That’s
going
to
have
some
direct
impact
on
what
the
congregants
are
doing
to
do
when
they’re
voting,”
said
Renick,
who
added
that
opponents
of
the
measure
must,
and
are,
using
religion
in
their
efforts
to
defeat
the
ban.
“They
really
shouldn’t
give
up
the
ground
to
the
Religious
Right
because
there
is
a
very
plausible
and
compelling
argument
that
would
argue
against
this
type
of
amendment
on
biblical
and
Christian
grounds,”
Renick
said.
A
recently
formed
group
of
black
gay
Christians
—
Lifting
Our
Voices
for
Equality,
or
LOVE
—
hopes
to
initiate
a
conversation
with
black
church
leaders
about
Amendment
1,
but
received
a
cold
reception
from
pastors
who
were
invited
to
attend
an
Oct.
28
forum.
“It
seems
like
they
can
sit
up
in
the
pulpit
and
talk
negatively
about
people,
but
when
they
have
to
stand
up
for
their
beliefs,
they
won’t
do
it,”
LOVE
co-founder
Crystal
Lawrence
said
about
black
pastors,
including
those
of
Atlanta’s
“mega
churches,”
all
of
whom
declined
an
invitation.
But
several
churches
have
come
out
against
the
proposed
amendment,
including
the
Central
Presbyterian
Church,
the
Metropolitan
Community
Churches
and
the
Unitarian
Universalist
Church.
Many
Unitarian
Universalist
congregations
wrapped
rainbow
ribbons
around
their
buildings
or
property
to
express
their
disapproval
of
the
gay
marriage
ban,
according
to
Rev.
Don
Southworth,
pastor
of
the
Northwest
Unitarian
Universalist
Congregation,
which
hosted
an
Oct.
19
forum
on
Amendment
1.
“So
many
people’s
perspective
of
gay
people
and
gay
issues
are
shaped
by
their
religion,
and
so
that’s
why
this
is
such
a
hot
topic,”
Southworth
said.
“But
I
think
there’s
a
huge
group
of
people
of
faith
who
are
against
this
amendment
—
every
religious
tradition
has
communities
opposed
to
it.”
Two
professional
groups
recently
weighed
in
against
the
amendment,
while
religious
groups
on
both
sides
of
the
issue
are
trying
to
mobilize
their
faithful
to
voting
booths
on
Nov.
2.
The
Georgia
Psychological
Association
issued
a
statement
in
September
outlining
its
opposition
to
Amendment
1,
saying
the
amendment
would
deny
same-sex
couples
and
their
children
more
than
1,100
federal
rights
and
benefits,
along
with
300
state
rights.
“The
Georgia
Psychological
Association
recognizes
that
withholding
these
protections
from
a
portion
of
the
population,
without
empirical
justification,
is
...
