VATICAN CITY ARTICLE ABOUT THEIR ANTI-GAY AGENDA

VATICAN CITY (July 28) - The Vatican hopes to rally public opposition 
to gay marriages in a worldwide campaign spurred by its alarm over 
growing legal acceptance of same-sex unions in Europe and North 
America.

Pope John Paul II has been speaking out for months against 
legislative proposals to legalize same-sex marriages. But 
instructions to be released this week go a step further by outlining 
a course of action for politicians and other lay people to oppose 
extending the rights accorded to traditional couples, Vatican 
officials told The Associated Press.

The document is titled ``Considerations Regarding Proposals to Give 
Legal Recognition to Unions Between Homosexual Persons.'' It was 
prepared by the church's guardian of orthodoxy, the Congregation for 
the Doctrine of the Faith, and is to be released Thursday, the 
officials said.

One official familiar with the document called it a ``practical 
reflection'' for both Catholic and non-Catholic politicians and 
public opinion in general.

It asks that the legal recognition accorded the traditional marriages 
not be extended to same-sex unions, the official told AP, speaking on 
condition of anonymity.

The document prescribes a course of action for politicians and lay 
communities and does not involve the clergy, Vatican officials said. 
It is expected to detail how the issue should be dealt with in public 
forums, including legislatures. The officials did not give provide 
examples.

The Catholic Church is not the only Christian denomination embroiled 
in the debate.

At its national convention, which begins Wednesday in Minneapolis, 
the Episcopal Church in the United States will decide whether to 
permit blessing ceremonies for same-sex unions and approve the first 
election of an openly gay bishop, issues that are sharply dividing 
that church.

Catholic teaching says homosexuals should not be subjected to 
``unjust discrimination,'' but it also says gays should be chaste.

In January, the pope approved guidelines on church teachings for 
Catholic politicians saying that the church's opposition to abortion, 
euthanasia and same-sex marriage is not up for negotiation.

The guidelines said laws safeguarding marriage between man and woman 
must be promoted and urged that ``in no way can other forms of 
cohabitation be placed on the same level as marriage, nor can they 
receive legal recognition as such.''

Legal acceptance is growing, however.

Over the past two years, the Netherlands and Belgium extended 
marriages rights to all couples, no matter the partners' gender.

Two Canadian provinces - Ontario and British Columbia - have 
legalized marriages for homosexuals under recent court rulings, a 
move that has attracted gays from across the border in the United 
States.

The Massachusetts supreme court is weighing whether to legalize same-
sex unions.

In reaction, some Republican lawmakers in Washington are calling for 
a constitutional amendment that would ban gay marriages nationwide.

Vermont and some European nations, such as Germany, France, Sweden 
and Denmark, have ``civil union'' laws giving same-sex couples the 
rights and responsibilities of traditional marriages.

After Germany's supreme court upheld the law this month, a top German 
cardinal condemned the law as a blow to the family.

``Now the associations of homosexuals have a potent arm to obtain 
further concessions on the road toward full equality with married 
couples, including the right to adoption,'' Cardinal Karl Lehman 
complained in a Vatican Radio interview.

The Vatican is particularly worried about the waning influence of the 
church in Europe. Drafters of a proposed constitution for the 
European Union ignored Vatican requests to include explicit mention 
of Europe's Christian roots.

On Sunday, the pope lamented that the church's message was being 
watered down in Europe, decrying the spread of a ``vague and little-
demanding religious sentiment, which could become agnosticism and 
practical atheism.''

Vatican officials said the document - 12 pages long and available in 
seven languages - is devoted entirely to the issue of same-sex 
marriages.

A leading gay activist in Italy, Franco Grillini, who is a member of 
parliament, condemned the Vatican's position as ``another intrusion 
into a country's affairs.''

He charged that the Vatican operated with a particularly heavy hand 
in Italy and several other predominantly Catholic countries in 
Europe, depriving gays of rights guaranteed elsewhere.

In the United States, the church sometimes criticizes Catholic 
politicians whose views clash with the faith's teachings. The 
Archdiocese of Santa Fe, for instance, ventured into the New Mexico 
gubernatorial campaign last year, circulating fliers about the 
candidates' stands on abortion. Among those criticized for supporting 
the right to abortion was Democrat Bill Richardson, who won the 
election.