c. 2003 Religion News Service
More Catholics Than Protestants Support Same-Sex Marriage
OTTAWA (RNS) A public opinion poll shows Catholics are more supportive of gay marriage than Protestants, leading one pollster to predict the Liberals could actually benefit from the Vatican’s recent intervention by appealing to Canadians’ widely held support for a separation between church and state.
The Ottawa Citizen reports that 57 percent of Catholics support same-sex marriages, while 40 percent are opposed. Among Protestants, only 38 percent support the concept and 58 percent are opposed. Among all Canadians, the poll found a slim majority, 53 percent, support same-sex marriage, while 43 percent are opposed and 3 percent are undecided.
Environics pollster Derek Leebosh suggested that Liberal backbenchers can safely ignore the flurry of negative reaction over same-sex marriage, given that a silent majority is in favor of it.
According to the survey of 2,018 Canadians, conducted between June 12 and July 6, women are more likely than men to support gay marriage, with 58 percent in favor, compared with only 49 percent of men.
The poll shows a split among younger and older Canadians, with 65 percent of 18- to 29-year-olds in favor and 33 percent opposed. Among people over 60, the numbers are reversed, with only 33 percent in favor and 64 percent opposed.
The survey has a margin of error of 2.2 percentage points.
Church Court Clears Priest
SUDBURY, Ontario (RNS) An ecclesiastical court has cleared an Anglican archdeacon of all misconduct in a case that saw the priest suspended from his duties since Jan. 30, reports the Anglican Journal.
Archdeacon Thomas Corston, a priest in the Diocese of Algoma, was charged last January after an adult male made a complaint of sexual misconduct. The ecclesiastical court ruled earlier this summer that the complainant was “a totally unbelievable witness” and that the allegations were “malicious and constitute a clumsy attempt to extort money from the diocese of Algoma.”
The court awarded Corston $50,000 in court costs, to be paid by the diocese.
Although Sudbury Regional Police investigated the complaint and found no basis for criminal charges, Bishop Ron Ferris referred a charge of “immorality” to the church court. Corston was suspended with pay and relieved of his duties as archdeacon of Sudbury-Manitoulin.
He has resumed his duties as parish priest and archdeacon.
In 1994, Corston was acquitted by a criminal court of three counts of indecent assault following complaints from two men.
Christians to Travel to Israel in Solidarity
TORONTO (RNS) A group made up largely of evangelical Christians from various denominations across Canada is planning a mission to Israel this fall to show solidarity with the Jewish state and to build better relations and understanding between Christians and Jews, reports the Canadian Jewish News.
Calling their trip the “Together for Israel Mission,” organizers Annie Elliott and Dean Bye say they can accommodate up to 300 people, and hope Canadian Jews will join them.
The mission is scheduled for Oct. 9-19, which will enable Jews and Christians to celebrate Sukkot, the Feast of Tabernacles, in Israel.
Participants will also be able to join the annual Jerusalem March, a parade through the capital attended by Jews and evangelical Christians from abroad each Sukkot for more than 20 years.
Elliott described the trip as a “grass-roots event (that) is not sponsored by one Christian organization or one Jewish organization.”
The Israeli embassy in Ottawa recently hosted a meeting for representatives of various churches and faith organizations, as well as interested Jewish groups, to hear about the trip from Elliott and Bye.
World Youth Day Book Marks Milestone
TORONTO _ The first anniversary of World Youth Day is being commemorated with a lavish coffee-table book.
“Reflections of His Light” celebrates the anniversary of WYD in Toronto by focusing on the most familiar symbol of Christian faith. The bilingual book is described by its publishers as a portrait of “the amazing 43,000-kilometer journey of (a) simple wooden cross from the Vatican in Rome to Canada, and its visits to cities, towns and tiny communities in every province and territory in Canada _ (as well as) a visit to Ground Zero in New York _ before making its way to Toronto July 23-28 for the massive World Youth Day 2002 celebrations overseen by the Pope.”
The 276-page book features photos by the dean of Canadian photojournalists, Boris Spremo, with text by Leslie Scrivener, religion and ethics writer for the Toronto Star.
The book promises to “capture the exhilarating emotion of thousands of Canadians who witnessed the cross’s journey _ touching, kissing, hugging it or simply basking in its presence _ as it made its way across the country.”
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