Wedding Bells for Washington, DC!

Remember what I was saying about Stir Up Sunday?

The city council in Washington, DC, by an 11-2 vote, has approved marriage equality for LGBT persons. All things being equal, the first tolling of the same-sex wedding bells in our nation's capital will be mid-March 2010. Some of the council members voted, "I do" during the roll call... and the final decision was met with much cheering from the assembled crowd. This is NOT the end of the line; Congress has the ultimate authority over all decisions made by the District of Columbia, and has 30 days to act on this vote. The good news is that, with Democrats in control, the likelihood of a Congressional override is highly unlikely.

But that hasn't stopped the opponents from vowing to fight this. The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington has announced that it will stop handling adoptions because they do not want to be "forced" into placing children with same-sex couples. And Bishop Harry Jackson, who really ought to have tea more often with +Henry Orombi and +Peter Akinola, is planning to use his Stand4Marriage group to rally for a city-wide referendum on the matter. It is very sad when a black man wants to put up rights conferred on another minority group for a public vote! Is he serious?!

Naysayers and nincompoops aside, this is wonderful news. And it makes sense, not just because it's the right thing to do. It is a politically smart thing for DC. Think about it: DC is where "the world" converges in this country, and there are plenty of European nations that have approved same-sex marriages... and slowly, the religious communities are coming around on this issue, too. Thus, DC really needed to take this step lest it be seen as UNfriendly to its compatriots on the planet.

Our nation's capital will be joining Vermont, Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire in offering marriage equality. Again, provided that nothing scuttles the council's vote.

Boy, the stirring and whirring is happening quickly! Come, Holy Spirit, and splash some of that soup over the edges of the pot to those places where the powers-that-be are cranking up the freezer!!