Recently, Minnesota's Catholic bishops sent out an "urgent message" supporting a ban on gay marriage. The mailing has some wondering whether the bishops crossed the line into endorsing a candidate for governor.
The "urgent message" from St. Paul-Minneapolis Archbishop John Nienstedt is that lawmakers' recent attempts to extend civil marriage rights to gays and lesbians amount to an "untested social experiment" and a "dangerous risk" to society. Nienstedt says putting a constitutional amendment banning same-sex unions before voters is the "only way to put the one man, one woman definition of marriage beyond the reach of the courts and politicians."
The "urgent message" from St. Paul-Minneapolis Archbishop John Nienstedt is that lawmakers' recent attempts to extend civil marriage rights to gays and lesbians amount to an "untested social experiment" and a "dangerous risk" to society.
Nienstedt says putting a constitutional amendment banning same-sex unions before voters is the "only way to put the one man, one woman definition of marriage beyond the reach of the courts and politicians."
What smells about this? Repub Tim Emmer is the only candidate in the race who favors amending the state constitution to ban gay marriage--and this came out only a few weeks before the election.
Several gay rights activists go further, suggesting that this isn't just an endorsement, but part of a coordinated effort to put a gay marriage ban on the ballot in Minnesota.
Gay rights advocates have cited similarities between Nienstedt's language on the DVD and political ads for Emmer by the National Organization for Marriage, which are airing simultaneously, as evidence the church is part of a coordinated effort to influence the governor's race.
Specifically, this ad:
Now compare it to Nienstedt's message:
And at least one priest thinks there's a fish decaying in the moonlight here. Father Michael Tegeder in Bloomington wrote an LTE to the Star Tribune pointing out that the DVD was crafted with the help of an anonymous donation--raising the possibility that it's using money from political groups.
Nienstedt himself insists there's nothing improper going on. He told Minnesota Public Radio last week that he's only trying to educate his flock about marriage. Still, the timing of this alone sounds pretty fishy.