Sikhs Told To Halt Weddings Over Uk Gay Marriage Law Passing

[genie]

Religion told to halt weddings over gay rights

The future of traditional Indian weddings in Britain is in doubt because of the fallout from gay marriage passing into law, it has emerged.

Religion told to halt weddings over gay rights

By John Bingham, Religious Affairs Editor

8:30AM BST 21 Jul 2013

Sikh temples have been advised to halt all civil marriage ceremonies on their premises to protect them from possible legal challenges for refusing to conduct same-sex weddings.

It is the first example of a religious group altering its marriage practices to avoid potential litigation based on equalities or human rights law.

Other groups, including the Church of England, the Roman Catholic Church and the orthodox Jewish organisation United Synagogue, also resisted the legislation, but they have not indicated that they will go as far as to surrender their marriage licences.

The Government has given repeated assurances that legal ­provisions should prevent anyone being forced to act against their religious teachings.

The warning comes in a letter to Sikh places of worship, known as gurdwaras, from Sikhs In England, a specialist advisory body.

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It urges them to consider deregistering as a venue for civil weddings which would leave gurdwaras performing wedding rites with no legal force.

Couples would have to attend a separate ceremony in a register office or other venue recognised by their local council.

Although the advice is not binding, it is understood that it is being taken seriously.

Lord Singh, the director of the Network of Sikh Organisations, told the House of Lords that he feared opponents of same-sex marriage would be coerced into accepting the new legal definition of marriage.

The network also advised members that it believes faith groups could end up being bullied into conducting same-sex marriages.

The same-sex marriage Act, which received Royal Assent this week, contains provisions to prevent individuals and groups from being compelled to carry out such unions, under a so-called quadruple lock of legal protections.

But Sikhs In England has told supporters that such assurances could be swept away by a challenge in Strasbourg. Harmander Singh, principal adviser to Sikhs In England, said: We are concerned that the quadruple lock isnt going to be worth the paper it is written on.

In the longer term, as soon as there is an issue and it goes to the European Court of Human Rights, no one can be sure, because the quadruple lock means nothing under subsidiarity.

In common with many churches, mosques and synagogues, gurdwaras are registered with councils as venues to conduct weddings.

It enables them to combine the civil formalities of the marriage with a religious ceremony.

If Sikh places of worship deregister, it would lead to a situation similar to that in France, where couples have a civil wedding at the town hall with a church service as an optional extra.

We have no authority, neither has the Government, to change our scriptures, said Mr Singh. We are bound by our religious teachings and we have been put in a difficult situation.

He added: Civil marriage is, with respect, a paper exercise.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/religion/10192578/Religion-told-to-halt-weddings-over-gay-rights.html

[genie]

The concept of marriage is a religious concept where a man marrys a woman its quite clear in Sikh scriptures and in all other major world religions. These gay extremists have lobbied now for gay marriage being equal to heterosexual marriage which makes a mockery of the religious marriage institution. Gays who only make up less than 2% of the UK population whereas even muslims have a higher population of around 2-3% and have less rights than gays. It seems gays have slowly but surely infiltrated every institution of power in the UK particularly media and politics so that their rights triumph over religious rights.

Marriage in civilization sense was created to safeguard the rights of women back in the days so that their needs would be looked after when they are found a suitable partner as they were not allowed to go out to work or vote or have a big say in how the affairs of the state was run. Since women were giving equal rights to earn money and live as they wish in most western societies and nations the decline of marriage and rise of divorces has been rapid. Marriage now has been eroded so much that it is seen as a dying institution which is leaving a devastating impact on well being of a socially cohesive society and kids of divorced parents often do not have any guidance left to fend for themselves in a confusing society of competing ideologies. And the passing of equal gay marriage only serves to further erode the marriage institution. This is not done by purpose for a greater goal of running society not by religious moral authority but by authority of corrupt bankster funded and run politicians and their govt who are the new priests of militant atheist secularist societies.

[N30S1NGH]

Good move by sikh temple to close an potential loop hole so nobody can abuse sikh sidhant..there are plenty of goons both from left wing and right wing who want to super impose themselves on sikh sidhant... walk all over it and take sikhi for free ride at expense of potential loop holes.!!

It's about damn time..very smart move...with that being said, I am against segregating individuals from sikhi based on their belief (gurbani is for whole humanity)..gays/lesbians should be given free chaplain sikh service outside of gurdwara so that they can administer generic vows of commitment of being good sikh (amrit- naam, kirat karni, vand kai shakna, niskham seva, join sadh sangat) so that they can move on with their journey.

[Jonny101]

Gay marriages have no place in a Gurdwara. Anand Karaj is only for a Sikh man and Sikh woman. If gays want to get married, they can find some other suitable way to register their marriage. But Gurdwara is not the place for this.

[LegalSingh]

The Law is clear. No place of worship can be compelled to conduct same sex marriages.

It makes no sense to court bad publicity over this issue now because of any hypotheticals that might or might not happen in the future in Strasbourg.