Subject: IWG West Virginia Marriage Letter
From: Interfaith Working Group <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 18 May 1999 01:15:34 -0400 (EDT)

May 16, 1999

Charleston Daily Mail 
1001 E. Virginia St.
Charleston, WV 25301

Dear Editors:

We strongly object to James C. Rymer's May 14
characterization of those who are trying to stop the
state from refusing to recognize the legal marriages
of same-gender couples as a "heterophobic special
elite."  Nobody is proposing that the state stop
recognizing the marriages of mixed-gender couples,
many supporters of the legal recognition of
same-gender marriage are themselves heterosexual, and
one can hardly refer to any group as "elite" that is
denied the very basic right of marriage.  Finally,
marriage means many things to many people, but we are
not aware of any tradition in which it is accurate to
say that marriages "swarm."

Sincerely,
Barbara Purdom     Christopher Purdom
Interfaith Working Group Coordinators

The above letter went out on IWG letterhead listing 17 congregations and
organizations and 61 clergy from 15 religious traditions. If you are in 
the general Philadelphia area and represent a congregation or religious 
organization or are clergy, let us know if you want to be added - all faiths 
are welcome. We will also be happy to help start similar organizations in 
other areas.

-- 

Interfaith Working Group                Religious organizations, congregations
http://www.libertynet.org/iwg           and clergy supporting gay rights,
[email-masked]                      reproductive freedom, and the 
voice: 215-235-3050  fax: 232-0829      separation of church and state.