Loading...
Loading...
Click here if you don’t see subscription options
April 20, 2009

Iowa’s Catholic bishops have voiced serious disagreement with the Iowa Supreme Court’s unanimous decision on April 3 to declare unconstitutional a state law defining marriage as a union of one man and one woman. “It implements a novel understanding of marriage, which will grievously harm families and children,” the bishops said in a prepared statement. The bishops vowed to continue to protect and promote marriage as a union between a man and a woman and asked Catholics and other citizens of Iowa to amend the state constitution to do so. The decision further allows gay and lesbian couples full access to the institution of civil marriage. With the high court’s ruling, Iowa became the third state in the nation to recognize marriages for gay and lesbian couples, after Massachusetts and Connecticut. Vermont became the fourth state to do so on April 7, 2009.

Comments are automatically closed two weeks after an article's initial publication. See our comments policy for more.

The latest from america

After an early morning attack on the Holy Family Church in Gaza, Pope Leo XIV called for an immediate ceasefire, dialogue and peace in the region.
Something essential is lost when generations remain siloed at church.
Juan MercedJuly 17, 2025
You’ve got a 401K. But do you have a spiritual retirement plan?
Myles N. SheehanJuly 17, 2025
Syrian security forces secure the area near St. Joseph Church in the Bab-Sharqi neighborhood of Damascus, Syria June 23, 2025, following the June 22 suicide bombing at Mar Elias Church. (OSV News photo/Firas Makdesi, Reuters)
A brief opening to shore up progress toward stability in Syria unfortunately coincides with Trump administration decisions to sharply curtail humanitarian and development assistance and to terminate the U.S. Agency for International Development.
Kevin ClarkeJuly 17, 2025