Clergy meet to plan campaign against marriage amendment

The leaders of dozens of churches and synagogues gathered in Minneapolis to compare notes on how to talk about the marriage amendment with their congregations. Minnesotans will vote this fall on whether to amend the Constitution to prohibit same sex marriage. The clergy who met Thursday are working to defeat the amendment. A similarly-sized group met in Eden Prairie last month to work on helping to pass it.

Author:: BMTN Staff
Updated:: Mar 8, 2018
Original:: Jun 7, 2012

The leaders of dozens of churches and synagogues gathered in Minneapolis to compare notes on how to talk about the marriage amendment with their congregations. Minnesotans will vote this fall on whether to amend the Constitution to prohibit same sex marriage. The clergy who met Thursday are working to defeat the amendment. A similarly-sized group met in Eden Prairie last month to work on helping to pass it.

Mats Zuccarello

The Wild rebounded after getting swept in Vegas.

Kirill Kaprizov / Minnesota Wild

The Wild rookie continues to create highlights.

Guy Fieri

In other words, Guy Fieri is returning to the Twin Cities.

Screen Shot 2020-06-15 at 7.11.05 AM

Police say it happened during a late 2019 basketball game.

Mark_Pavelich

The 63-year-old had been ordered to undergo psychiatric care.

hennepin county government center fencing minneapolis chauvin

Minneapolis hopes to be reimbursed for fortification costs by the state if it passes the proposed SAFE Account.

Cell phone

Eden Prairie PD has issued a warning to locals.

police lights

Three people from Detroit Lakes are facing charges, with two of the men involved accused of making a false report of gunmen entering a local business.

Drive-up vaccine

The healthcare provider says it's the first drive-up vaccination site in the state.

plow, snow

The Swedish names won the city's snowplow naming contest.

derek chauvin

The appeals court's recent decision on a different officer-involved shooting case is precedent, it said.

covid-19, vaccine

The Minnesota Department of Health revealed race and ethnicity vaccine data on Friday.

Religious leaders are at the forefront of the final weekend of campaigning for and against the marriage amendment on Tuesday's ballot. More than 500 Christian leaders with the group Minnesota Pastors For Marriage released a statement in support of the amendment that would Constitutionally define marriage as an opposite sex union. Opponents planned a worship service followed by the blessing of a "Minnesota Votes No Tour" that will travel the state until Election Day.

In a fundraising email for Minnesotans United, retiring state Rep. John Kriesel strongly encouraged people to make a donation because "defeating this amendment won't be cheap." The Republican lawmaker also wrote, "We’re facing a constitutional amendment this fall that threatens families. It aims to tell Minnesotans which committed couples are worthy of marriage in our state -- and worse, which ones aren’t."

St. Paul-area Lutherans are expected to go on record this weekend against the proposed marriage amendment to the state Constitution that would define marriage as a union between a man and woman. Nearly 600 Lutherans, representing about 115 congregations in the St. Paul Area Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, are scheduled to vote Saturday in Burnsville.

The Golden Valley-based company came out Thursday to voice its opposition to the proposed constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage in Minnesota. "We do not believe the proposed constitutional amendment is in the best interests of our employees or our state economy -- and as a Minnesota-based company we oppose it," General Mills said in a statement. The Pioneer Press notes General Mills and Little Canada-based St. Jude Medical are the only two major corporations in Minnesota to publicly oppose the marriage amendment.

100 days before Election Day 2012, opponents of the marriage amendment embarked on a three-day phone blitz aimed at reaching 100,000 voters. Supporters of the amendment that would change the Minnesota Constitution to effectively ban gay marriage say they don't have to make as much noise. But they're quietly working to identify supporters and make sure they turn out at the polls.

A leader of the Minnesota for Marriage campaign pushing for approval of the marriage amendment has likened his anti-amendment foes to Adoph Hitler. Minnesota for Marriage has apologized for the comments and told the pastor to stick to his talking points.

Campaign finance records show Rev. Peter Lambert of St. Louis Catholic Church, about 45 miles west of Duluth, donated $1,000 about six months ago to Minnesotans United for All Families -- the primary group fighting the controversial ballot measure to essentially ban same-sex marriage in Minnesota. The News Tribune reports no other Minnesota priest in a recognized diocese has contributed to any group trying to defeat the constitutional amendment.

Musicians with the Minnesota Orchestra are the latest group to oppose the constitutional marriage amendment, WCCO reports. It seeks to define marriage solely between one man and one woman in Minnesota. Voters will decide during the general election this fall.

DONTCHA KNOW?

You Can Get BMTN Special Offers!

Get Our Newsletter