Mayors Say Same-Sex Marriages Should Be Considered by the State

Matthew Hersh

Ever since San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom began issuing marriage licenses to gay and lesbian couples, a cross-country mushroom effect has prompted mayors of other municipalities to recognize same-sex unions.

While a moratorium has been placed on issuing marriage licenses in San Francisco, and Mayor Jason West of New Paltz, NY, has been charged with solemnizing marriages without a license, many state laws do not directly specify the logistics of marriage, and if they do, many offer nebulous interpretations regarding the institution.

Such is the case in New Jersey, where state law statutes governing marriage do not directly address same-sex marriage, according to Princeton Borough Mayor Joe O'Neill.

"The [marriage laws] offer a long list of those you may not marry, but nowhere on that list does it say that you cannot marry a person of the same sex," Mayor O'Neill said. "Whatever the intent of the legislature was when they put that list of impermissible partners [together], they probably never even thought that two men or women would want to get married."

However, municipalities across the state must consider a recent court decision by Mercer County Superior Court Judge Linda Feinberg ruling that marriage laws, as a whole, do not indicate same-sex couples have the right to marry. The ruling was a factor in the halting of a lesbian wedding set to take place in Hopewell two weeks ago.

Last week, New Jersey Attorney General Peter Harvey said that while the state recognizes the "sincerity" of same-sex relationships, it does not permit same-sex couples to marry. Mr. Harvey left the debate open-ended, however, saying that the state legislature can change the law if it chooses to do so.

However, both Princeton Borough Mayor Joe O'Neill and Township Mayor Phyllis Marchand, believe that these interpretations of state law are influenced by religious application and that marriage and religion should be viewed by the state as separate entities and should be fused only if the couple chooses to have a religious ceremony.

Mayor O'Neill, a former Jesuit priest, thinks the doctrine of the separation of church and state needs to apply to the institution of marriage as well.

"There are two forms of marriage, and we are in no way trying to denigrate religious marriages which the churches define on their own," he said. He pointed out that with the exception of polygamy, that state has never specifically delegated mandates over the institution.

Mayor O'Neill, who performed a commitment ceremony for his daughter and her partner seven years ago, cited European marriage laws as examples of such a separation. Laws in France, the Mayor said, require a couple to have a civil wedding first, and then hold a religious wedding, typically on the same day.

"What we tend to do here is muddle the role that a minister, priest, or rabbi [has]," the mayor said, adding that a member of the clergy who is not registered with the state cannot perform marriages and that a "wider valley" should be maintained between religion and state. Once that happens, the Mayor said "we can deal with same-sex marriage as an issue of civil rights rather than something that is defined by the bible."

Does changing the guidelines of marriage set a precedent for the institution to be arbitrarily interpreted? Not so, according to Mayor O'Neill, who said that legalizing same-sex marriage "defines exactly what [marriage] means, and who is eligible to be part of it."

"So much of this is verbal, rather than substantive," he added.

Township Mayor Marchand agreed.

"It's really just a matter of semantics," she said. She added that regardless of legal classification, perpetuating individual happiness is paramount.

"I would be thrilled to perform a wedding for two people who want to commit to living with each other for the rest of their lives," she said. The Mayor said she would only perform such a ceremony with proper legal documentation, however.

Mayor Marchand also said that she would not perform marriage ceremonies in places of worship, saying it is up to the clergy and couple to include that element in their wedding.

In Princeton Township and Borough, a couple wishing to get married must acquire certification through the Department of Health.

The nationwide topic of same-sex marriage has come to New Jersey, just as the state found itself in the vanguard of the same-sex partners issue. New Jersey is one of only five states that allow civil unions between same-sex couples. Under New Jersey's Domestic Partnership Act, many same- or opposite-sex unmarried couples can receive most of the benefits married couples do.