Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone of San Francisco, chairman of the U.S. bishops’ Subcommittee for the Promotion and Defense of Marriage, responded today to the bill passed by the Hawaii legislature and signed by the governor to redefine marriage.
“The decision in Hawaii is disappointing and shows the need for rebuilding a culture of the family in our country,” said Archbishop Cordileone. “Changing the meaning of marriage in the law does not promote the common good or protect authentic rights.”
“When referring to the family,” the archbishop said, “Pope Francis put it this way: ‘I think first and foremost of the stable union of man and woman in marriage.’ The very point of marriage having the unique status in the law that it has is to promote the right of children to have a mother and a father. Only a married man and woman can provide that. The question we need to ask ourselves is this: How can we honestly justify a law that in principle denies children this right?”
Archbishop Cordileone added, “My prayers are with the many people who helped defend marriage in Hawaii in a spirit of charity and truth, and by so doing, helped defend a culture of the family. Their efforts were not in vain, and their witness will continue to bear fruit.”
