The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) released a lengthy pastoral letter on marriage today subtitled Love and Life in the Divine Plan.
It defines marriage as "a lifelong partnership of the whole of life, of mutual and exclusive fidelity, established by mutual consent between a man and a woman, and ordered towards the good of the spouses and the procreation and education of offspring."
Philip Lawler, founder and editor of Catholic World News, said that definition extends past the church and into the public sector.
"The church has always been very strong and consistent in saying that the government has to uphold marriage," he said, "because the family based on marriage is the foundational building block of any society."
Richard McCord, director of the USCCB Committee on Laity, Marriage, Family Life and Youth, said while 180 bishops voted in favor of the policies in the letter, forty-five opposed the statement.
"It's not a substantive disagreement," McCord said. "I think it would have been more of a disagreement of presentation, style, emphasis and so forth."
—Steve Jordahl
