The Rev. Gay Clark Jennings is among nearly 2,000 religious leaders who have signed an amicus brief asking the U.S. Supreme Court to make same-sex marriage legal nationwide.
Jennings, who has served as president of the House of Deputies since 2012, joined a conference call March 6 to discuss this brief, along with 70 others coordinated by Lambda Legal.
The brief “debunks the notion that there is one universal definition of marriage” among religious bodies, President Jennings said. She added that the brief regards civil marriage and not the sacramental understanding of marriage held by churches.
“Like many of my colleagues, I signed the amicus brief not despite my religious belief but because of it,” Jennings said.
Others speakers during the call included:
- Charlie Baker, Governor of Massachusetts, who signed an amicus brief sponsored by his fellow Republicans. Also signing that brief, said Camilla Taylor, national director of Lambda Legal’s Marriage Project, was “major mega-donor” David Koch, a longtime advocate of libertarian policies [conservatives’ brief PDF].
- Mark Herring, attorney general of the Commonwealth of Virginia, who compared legal struggles on same-sex marriage to legal struggles regarding interracial marriage.
- Madeline Rogero, Mayor of Knoxville, who spoke of several major employers in her city that favor legal marriage for same-sex couples [mayors’ brief PDF].
- Brian Auld, president of the Tampa Bay Rays, who spoke about a brief signed by 379 business representatives [PDF].
