Urgent action is needed this weekend to oppose Government's same-sex marriage bill

The government's same-sex marriage bill has been published today. The critical Second Reading date has been announced: Tuesday 5 February. We must persuade MPs to vote against it.

Urgent action is therefore needed - not least, this weekend in churches throughout Britain.

a) Please write, phone or email your MP and ask him/her to oppose the bill on 5 February. It is also very important to ask your MP to oppose the “programme motion” (which seeks to limit debate on the bill). Ask your friends and relatives and pro-life contacts to do the same.

b) Support the Catholic Bishops’ “Speak Out for Marriage” postcard campaign

Archbishop Peter Smith has launched a campaign asking people to sign a postcard and send it to their MP. The postcard is headed: “Speak Out for Marriage”, and asks MPs to oppose the redefinition of marriage. Archbishop Smith has sent supplies of the cards to all parishes in England and Wales. (These should reach parishes by Saturday 26 January.)

Please help your local churches distribute the cards this weekend (26/27 January). They could help to influence MPs before the second reading on 5 February. However, next weekend will probably be too late to post the cards to MPs before 5 February, so next weekend, please ask people to telephone or email their MP on Monday 4 or on Tuesday 5 Feb (the votes will be at about 7pm). People can still send the postcards, but they are not likely to reach MPs before the votes.

SPUC wrote to priests (on 23 Jan) in support of the “Speak Out for Marriage” postcards. This is how we suggest the campaign should be organised:

1. Hand cards to mass-goers as they arrive for Sunday mass.
2. Priests celebrating mass speak about the importance of defending marriage and of the bishops’ postcard campaign in their homily or at another appropriate moment.
3. The name of the local MP (or MPs) should be mentioned.
4. Pens & stamps – providing pens for people to fill in the postcards before they leave church, and stamps they can purchase to post them will encourage people to act.
5. If this is not possible, please strongly urge people to post the postcards to their MP immediately upon returning home.
6. Further details about the postcard are available at: http://www.catholicchurch.org.uk/Home/Featured/Speak-Out-For-Marriage

Comments on this blog? Email them to johnsmeaton@spuc.org.uk
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