The Pittsburgh Post Gazette published viewpoints of both sides of the argument surrounding Pennsylvania Senate Bill 1250 regarding Gay Marriage.

Background: On April 10, the state Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing in the Allegheny County Courthouse on Senate Bill 1250, a proposed state constitutional amendment that would ban same-sex marriage or civil unions for gays. Gay marriage currently is banned by law in Pennsylvania and there is no legal provision for civil unions. The viewpoints published here by Pittsburgh City Councilman Bruce A. Kraus and Pittsburgh Bishop David A. Zubik (Roman Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh) are adapted from their remarks at the hearing.

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Excerpts from Viewpoint#1: For gay marriage in Pennsylvania, City Councilman Bruce A. Kraus:

In this life, I am many things. I am a son to my father, Charles, and my mother, Deloris. I am a brother to my brothers, Chuck and Jim. I am a grandson to my grandparents, Charles and Helen and Blanch and George. I am a nephew to my numerous aunts and uncles. And I am the best uncle in the world to my niece and nephew, Kaliegh and Chase, whom I love more than I can tell you today…

I am a champion, always, for the underdog. Wherever I find it, I fight against social injustice and for equality for all people.

I am a lover of animals, music and the arts and cannot imagine living in a world without them.

I am a duly elected member of Pittsburgh City Council, voted by a majority of the people to represent the 3rd District, and a colleague to the other eight members of council, beside whom I proudly serve.

And I am a gay man.

But, if you were to listen to the hate speech of Oklahoma state Rep. Sally Kern to learn about who I am, you would learn that, in her own words, speaking directly about me, in a speech to her peers, “Gays are infiltrating City Council … in Pittsburgh, Pa. … [and that I] … am a cancer that spreads [and] will destroy this nation … [and] … the biggest threat this nation faces, even more than terrorists and Islam.”

Today, once again, by the actions of our Pennsylvania General Assembly, I am reminded that the last, socially acceptable targets of discrimination within our society are gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transgendered people. With Senate Bill 1250, Pennsylvania state legislators, under the guise of morality and religiosity, seek to amend the constitution of the commonwealth of Pennsylvania to read: “No union other than a marriage between one man and one woman shall be valid or recognized as marriage or the functional equivalent of marriage by the commonwealth.”

With all the challenges that we, as a commonwealth, are facing — deteriorating infrastructure; staggering health-care costs; municipalities crippled by the inability or unwillingness of legislators to ensure that nonprofits contribute toward ever escalating municipal service costs; rampant gun violence; and corruption in government — certain Pennsylvania state legislators would like us to believe that defining marriage and outlawing civil union is our most pressing legislative priority.

In reality this is their mark of shame.

Legislating a ban on same-sex marriage or civil unions is homophobia, bigotry and sanctioned discrimination of a selected class of people. I would liken homophobia to racism, sexism and anti-Semitism because it seeks to dehumanize people and deny them their dignity, personhood and equal protection under the law. In the year 2008, would you dare to legislate to deny marriage or civil union based on race, creed, age or ethnicity?

This need not become a mark of shame, but rather a call to courage — the courage to overcome fear and injustice. Choosing the right thing to do is not always popular or easy, but standing for what is right and true and just, especially when it is unpopular, is the true test of moral character.

Today I ask you, as members of the state General Assembly, with the power to end this discrimination before it can go any further, to not only vote against SB 1250, but to speak out against it and the intolerance, prejudice and discrimination it represents. (Read full viewpoint here)

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Excerpts from Viewpoint#2: Against gay marriage in Pennsylvania, Bishop David A. Zubik:

In just a few days, Pope Benedict XVI will be arriving in Washington for his pastoral visit to the United States. One of the interesting facets about this papal trip is that it is not viewed as news exclusive to Catholics.

A recent poll indicates that a vast majority of Americans — 70 percent — are looking forward to the Holy Father’s visit in the United States as a spiritual leader. He is really recognized as a universal pastor of the entire world, perhaps because of his willingness to speak for truth, no matter if it is popular or unpopular.

I am coming to you today, much as Pope Benedict XVI will come to our country next week, as a pastor. That is what I do and who I am — a pastor. I don’t come to you today as a lawyer, a legislator, an activist or a lobbyist. I come to you today as a pastor, a pastor with a desire to testify on behalf of one of the oldest institutions of humanity — marriage itself.

Many men and women are called to married life. Implicit in this call is the practical ramification of how married life is to be lived. Married men and women are called to live for others to form the very backbone of society. This call to a marriage is a tremendous blessing, as well as a tremendous responsibility.

That marriage has extraordinary cultural impact is as old as humanity. That marriage must be considered truly sacred seems to elude us. We have reached the point of a laissez faire view of marriage, a concerted effort to expand its definition so vaguely that marriage essentially becomes meaningless. At a time when we should be engaged in doing all we can to strengthen marriage, and especially strengthen the family, we are facing cultural forces that want to so water down the definition of marriage that it could apply to any human relationship, or to no relationship at all.

We Catholics are not unique in our view of marriage. People of other faiths and those who profess no religion have long held the same view. The laws of many nations favor or grant special status to unions between one man and one woman. This reflects a widely shared understanding grounded in the natural law that marriage and family life are fundamental to the moral and social well being of the community.

Very clearly, we need to have a Marriage Protection Amendment to the Pennsylvania constitution that recognizes marriage for what it is: a sacred covenant between husband and wife, between one man and one woman as an indispensable institution for society and as the indispensable foundation of family. Without a constitutional protection of marriage, Pennsylvania will find itself in the terrible position of struggling to defend marriage after it has been rendered legally and fundamentally meaningless.

We have seen the results of the devaluation of marriage, of using marriage as a testing lab for various agendas. We need now what is best for children, families, and society.

Today in Pennsylvania, we need the Marriage Protection Amendment. (Read full viewpoint here)

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Your Hostess preaches to the LGBT choir:

A simple numbers game ladies and gentlemen…count the number of times City Councilman Kraus uses the word “LOVE” (He uses it more in the full transcript). Now do the same for Bishop Zubik.

Where is the love, Bishop Zubik? I know where mine is…in my heart…for my wife of 12 years…whether they say it’s so or not. So here’s what I can do about it.

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Equality Advocates of Pennsylvania is working hard to defeat the “Marriage Protection Amendment”. They will be holding a rally Monday, May 5th in Harrisburg. Training is at 11am. The rally starts at 1pm. If you would like to join the carpool leaving from the Mainline area, email: renth@verizon.net for more information.

There will be more events in summer and fall as this amendment and other issues affect our community, and know that groups and individuals like Bishop Zubik will be there representing the opposing view.