Houston gays take part in national marriage event

Even though Texas does not acknowledge same-sex marriages, 42 Houston gay and lesbian couples gathered over the weekend and exchanged vows as part of a national campaign. "It's sad that we can't have a day like this every day hosted by every church," said the Reverend Dwayne Johnson, pastor of Resurrection Metropolitan Community Church in Houston, the site of Saturday's ceremony. The ceremony was part of Freedom to Marry Week, during which same-sex couples from across the country are expected to draw attention to the issue of gay marriage. No opponents of gay marriage protested the event Saturday. When the Reverend Chris Chiles told the couples they "may kiss the spouse" on Saturday, he included himself, kissing the Reverend John Paluch, his copastor at Community Gospel Church. Chiles and Paluch drew an ovation when one of the 12 ministers participating in the event noted they'd been together 27 years. Unitarian Universalist, Disciples of Christ, Presbyterian, American Baptist, Pentecostal, and nondenominational ministers took part in the ceremony. Resurrection Metropolitan Community Church has hosted the Freedom to Marry Week ceremony in Houston for the past three years. (AP)