OU Disappointed by Obama’s Endorsement of Same Gender Marriage

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ou-emblem2Today, the leadership of the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America issued the following statement in reaction to President Barack Obama’s endorsement of legal recognition for same gender marriage:

The Orthodox Union is disappointed by today’s statement by President Obama endorsing legal recognition of same [gender] marriage. Jewish law is unequivocal in opposing same [gender] relationships. Moreover, marriage and family has long been a prime value for the Jewish people. While Judaism also teaches respect for others and condemns discrimination we, as Orthodox Jewish leaders, oppose any effort to change the definition of marriage to include same [gender] unions.

Such legalization is also problematic with regard to religious liberty, as dissenting institutions are pressured to support or recognize relationships they cannot. Thus, we appreciate President Obama’s statement today acknowledging that in states where same [gender] relationships are legally recognized, such laws must carefully address and protect the religious liberties of dissenting individuals and institutions, and the President’s reported reference to the New York State law (on whose strong religious liberty provisions the OU worked) as a model for how such protections must be in place.

The Orthodox Union will continue its efforts to advance the values and interests of our community in the public square through civility and the democratic process.

{Matzav.com Newscenter}


11 COMMENTS

  1. and so many jews out there are still going to vote for obama. its time to wake up and see what the democrats are all about. 25 years ago the democrats where good for jews and there values but the last few years everything changed.

  2. As indicated by their eloquent statement above, the OU is much, much more than our largest Kashrus certifier. Among their major Chesed activities is the OU Job Board, for job training and job placement: http://www.oujobs.org

  3. If you’ll check the Pew Research Center, one the largest and most impartial of the opinion pollsters, 47% of Americans are in favor of same-gender marriage, 43% are opposed, and of course there are those 11%, as always, who “don’t know.” The problem is not whether or not the President endorses it. The problem is that half of American society now takes it for granted. This is not going to change, no matter who wins in November. Fortunately, we live in a democracy. Unfortunately, the rest of the people in it don’t always agree with us. Hopefully, when it’s no longer forbidden, it will lose some of its appeal. As Chazal say, “Mayim genuvim mamtakim.” Stolen waters are sweet “because” they are stolen.”

    Incidentally, the same poll shows that support for gun ownership is way up. Maybe the “conservative” vs “liberal” split we’ve learned to love isn’t so useful after all.

  4. Kudos to Agudah for being the first to release a statement about this. Kudos to the OU kashrus agency for following their lead.

  5. And kudos to the people who are posting who are expressing themselves in a civilized and derech-eretzdik fashion. You can point out that you think someone is wrong without using crude or insulting language. A lot of people don’t agree with Mr. Obama on this one, but he’s still President and deserves the respect of the office. People who don’t like him can vote for Mr. Romney in November. That’s democracy in action.

  6. The word disappointment connotes that the OU expected better of Obama. What high hopes do you have for the president that makes Jimmy Carter look like a quality president?

  7. The marriage contract in civil society and the religious aspects of marriage need to be totally separated

    Jewish law forbids many relationships which are perfectly legal in civil society; and secular law forbids relationships which are clearly within halachic boundaries.

    The issues are separate; and the time has come to recognize that 2 different worlds exist – sometimes they coincide and other times they must just leave each other alone.

    Or we wind up being forced to adapt Christian views of marriage and divorce in Jewish law.

  8. It’s truly a nice and useful piece of information. I’m happy that you simply shared this useful info with us. Please keep us informed like this. Thank you for sharing.

  9. #4:
    Those numbers are not reflected in the way individual states have decided on this matter. The vast majority of states that have put this to a vote/referendum have overwhelmingly decided NOT to legalize same-gender marriage.

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