American Catholics and Same-Sex 'Marriage'
Catholic Social Science Review, 15 (2010): 97-123
28 Pages Posted: 16 Feb 2015
Date Written: 2010
Abstract
Although Catholic teaching opposes same-sex “marriage” (SSM), in America Catholics support SSM more strongly than do Protestants, and states with Catholic majorities are much more likely to regularize homosexual relations. Younger persons support SSM more strongly than do their elders, suggesting that support will continue to grow. The trends in American Catholic thought on this issue exemplify American exceptionalism, moralism, and growing secularism, and reflect catechetical ambiguity, equivocation among the U.S. bishops, elite dissent, and the lingering effects of the clergy sex abuse scandals and the birth control controversy.
Keywords: same-sex, marriage, Catholic Church, public opinion, General Social Survey
JEL Classification: J12, J18
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation