23/03/2014

The first same-sex marriages in England and Wales take place on March 29th and as the pioneering couples celebrate, there will be jubilation for campaigners who’ve fought long for what they see as a basic human freedom, the prime minister among them.

For many who lobbied against this change in the law, the day will be a gloomy one, marking, they claim, yet another corrosion of traditional values.

Most church bodies opposed the redefinition: for them, marriage remains exclusively between one man and one woman. But churches still have the right to opt in by offering weddings - unless, that is, they are Anglicans, who have been specifically and controversially forbidden by law from doing so…even though significant numbers of Anglican priests have for years skirted their church’s discipline by providing informal services to same-sex couples wanting their unions blessed.

Why is it such a big issue for many people of faith? Who has the right to define marriage? And will this development seriously undermine the whole institution, or strengthen it?