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Same-sex marriage in New Zealand has become a near certainty after legislation to allow it passed its first reading in Parliament on Wednesday by 80 votes to 40. Labour MP Louisa Wall , who is sponsoring the Marriage (Definition of Marriage) Amendment Bill, says the legislation will not force church priests or ministers to conduct same-sex marriages. So why has the Bill attracted so much opposition from church leaders? Reporter Allison Rudd investigates. For Neill Ballantyne, who is gay and a Christian, the likelihood same-sex couples will be able to marry is something to be celebrated.New Zealand introduced civil union ceremonies in 2005 and since then 2152 couples - 1685 same-sex couples and 467 opposite-sex couples - have opted for civil unions. To all intents and purposes, civil unions are almost identical to marriage. But they are not marriage. Mr Ballantyne, the Otago University Students Association queer support officer and national secretary of the Student Christian Union of

Image via Wikipedia DUNEDIN, New Zealand , July 26, 2010.  A recent Otago University   study  has found that homosexual or bisexual individuals are more likely to have undergone a variety of of traumas in childhood, including sexual assault , rape, violence, and witnessing violence in the home. "People who either identify themselves as homosexual or bisexual, or have had a same-sex encounter or relationship, tend to come from more disturbed backgrounds," said Research Associate Professor Elisabeth Wells.  The study analyzed results from a New Zealand Mental Health study that surveyed about 13,000 people between 2003 and 2004.  98% of the participants in the study identified themselves as heterosexual; 0.8% identified as homosexual; 0.6% identified as bisexual; and 0.3% identified as "something else."  Of people who reported certain traumatic childhood events, 15% were not heterosexual; of those without such experiences, only 5% were not heterosexual, suggesting t