From the Archbishop in OK City

Archbishop Coakley Statement on Supreme Court Ruling for Same-Sex Marriage

“Today is a moment of historic consequence for our nation. The Supreme Court has made a tragic error. This decision will have devastating consequences, especially for children today and for generations to come. No matter the court’s ruling, it cannot change
what marriage really is. Marriage by its nature remains the union of one man and one woman. Marriage is a natural institution that predates and precedes governments and government regulation.

Marriage is about far more than love shared between adults. Society needs an institution that connects children to their mothers and fathers, and marriage is the only institution that by its nature is able to accomplish this. Children have a basic right, wherever possible, to know and be loved by their mother and father together in a stable union.

The Church will steadfastly defend this right, and continue to affirm the sanctity of marriage as established by God, written into human nature, and recognized as such for millennia. Even as Roe v. Wade did not end the public debate over abortion, this decision will not end the debate over marriage. I encourage prayers for our nation, for families and children, and for those who disagree with us. Now more than ever we have to be vigilant in our defense of religious liberty due to the threats that are sure to ramp up as a result of this decision and its consequences in law and in public opinion.”



- The Most Rev. Paul S. Coakley, Archbishop Oklahoma City Archdiocese