Former Catholic Bishop of Salt Lake City Decries Religious Bigotry in Political Ad; Defends LDS Role in California Ballot Initiative Protecting Traditional Marriage
Last update: 9:26 p.m. EST Nov. 7, 2008
SACRAMENTO, Calif., Nov 07, 2008 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- The following statement was released today by Bishop William Weigand, head of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Sacramento and former Bishop of Salt Lake City, in response to attacks on the Mormon Church for supporting California's Proposition 8, defending the traditional definition of marriage:
"Catholics stand in solidarity with our Mormon brothers and sisters in support of traditional marriage--the union of one man and one woman--that has been the major building block of Western Civilization for millennia.
"The ProtectMarriage coalition, which led the successful campaign to pass Proposition 8, was an historic alliance of people from every faith and ethnicity. LDS were included--but so were Catholics and Jews, Evangelicals and Orthodox, African-Americans and Latinos, Asians and Anglos.
"Bigoted attacks on Mormons for the part they played in our coalition are shameful and ignore the reality that Mormon voters were only a small part of the groundswell that supported Proposition 8.
"As the former bishop of the Diocese of Salt Lake City, I can attest to the fact that followers of the Mormon faith are a good and generous people with a long history of commitment to family and giving to community causes.
"I personally decry the bigotry recently exhibited towards the members of the Church of the Latter Day Saints--coming from the opponents of Proposition 8, who ironically, have called those of us supporting traditional marriage intolerant.
"I call upon the supporters of same-sex marriage to live by their own words--and to refrain from discrimination against religion and to exercise tolerance for those who differ from them. I call upon them to accept the will of the people of California in the passage of Proposition 8."
SOURCE: Roman Catholic Diocese of Sacramento
6 comments:
Thank you for this post...it's been rough these last couple of weeks in CA...It's nice to hear other people stick up for Prop 8 AND us...
I have been thinking about Jill a lot these last few days. I hope that she stays safe. Thank you for posting this. I pray for all the saints that are having to face persecution ~
Cool article.
Whenever I watch the TV I feel so annoyed and bothered by the way that Mormons are portrayed. It is nice to read stuff like this.
Great article! it is nice to see others stand up as well.
Thanks J.J. ;)
Rest assured, friends and family, there are many more letters and articles similar to this one. This past week has brought blessings along with the difficulties.
-many letters and phone calls of support (from all over the world, from those who are not LDS) to the temple thanking the church members for their work and expressing sadness at the treatment of church members by many people
-Richard Simmons told my friends that he was sad to see Mormons being treated so poorly (they go to his aerobics class, no joke)
-a group of professional African-American men standing in front of the LA Temple with signs that read "I voted yes on Prop 8"
-missionaries are being stopped and asked about the temple and the church
-the media is FINALLY paying a bit more attention to our difficulties, since the "white powder" incident
-members seem to attend the temple with greater earnestness and desire; it easy to recognize the blessing of religious worship right now
And many more untold stories are small events that continue to strengthen the CA LDS and all others that support the passing of the prop.
Post a Comment