Mixed Reactions to Minn. Antimarriage Amendment

The proposal to add a same-sex marriage ban to Minnesota's constitution is getting support from an expected quarter and opposition from an unexpected one.

The Roman Catholic archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis has issued a special prayer for the faithful to say at Mass leading up to next November's election, when Minnesotans will vote on the ban, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports. It reads in part, "Grant to us all the gift of courage to proclaim and defend your plan for marriage, which is the union of one man and one woman in a lifelong, exclusive relationship ... open to the conception of children."

It's the latest in a series of anti-marriage equality efforts by Minnesota's Catholic hierarchy, the paper reports, noting that this fall, "the state's Catholic bishops took the unusual step of directing parish priests across the state to form committees to help get the marriage amendment passed by voters."

Meanwhile, some Republicans are rallying against the amendment. A recent gathering aimed at young Republicans featured two GOP state representatives opposed to the measure, John Kriesel and Tim Kelly, reports the website Politics in Minnesota.

"The idea really was to give people an opportunity just to talk about it," said Jake Loesch of Minnesotans United for All Families, which is leading the fight against the measure and helped organize the event, held at a bar in St. Paul. "For a lot of conservatives, they may be uncomfortable coming into this office or other events where there may be more [Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party] members. Sometimes it's easier to talk when you're with people that you can relate to a little more."

Republican votes will be key to defeating the amendment, the site noted, and young Republicans are much less opposed to marriage equality than their elders. "For me, I don't think it's a matter of being a Republican or a Democrat," another organizer of the event, Madeline Koch, told the website. "For a lot of Republicans that I know in my generation, it's a nonissue."