Dutch Reformed Church did not endorse gay unions

The Dutch Reformed Church has denied some reports on its submission to Parliament on the draft civil unions bill to endorse same sex marriage.

Media reports regarding the Dutch Reformed Church's submission to the home affairs portfolio committee were in some cases "unnuanced" and did not always fully reflect all the facts, Kobus Gerber, the Dutch Reformed Church general Synod general-secretary, said today.

The committee is weighing up whether to approve the bill separate from the existing Marriage Act, to cater for same sex partnerships. Gerber said in a statement "in the interests of clarification" the Dutch Reformed Church viewed marriage exclusively as a relationship between one man and one woman.

"Submission did not champion gay marriages"
"Our submission did not argue or champion gay marriages as such, and highlighted numerous problems in the proposed legislation, which also affect the rights of the Dutch Reformed Church," he said.

"We pointed out that the core of the matter is a constitutional one affecting rights - those of the Dutch Reformed Church, gays and of other religious groups whose marriages are also not recognised at the moment."

While the State had already granted specific rights to gay relationships by way of the Constitutional Court judgment, the Dutch Reformed Church's intention was to ensure that it and other churches and groups retained the right to refer to marriage within their own definitions.

The full submission is available on the Dutch Reformed Church's website: www.ngkerk.org.za. - Sapa