French socialists in retreat as religious leaders, conservatives rally against homosexual ‘marriage’
November 6, 2012 (LifeSiteNews.com) - When Francois Hollande and France’s socialist parties swept into power in May of this year, the passage of homosexual “marriage” and other anti-life and anti-family measures appeared to be inevitable. However, only months later Hollande and his allies are on the defensive against a surprisingly broad groundswell of opposition to his plans, led by André Vingt-Trois, the Cardinal Archbishop of Paris.
Vingt-Trois, as well as Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim leaders, have vociferously expressed their opposition to the proposed measure, and have been joined by conservative politicians and pro-life activists, who staged an attention-grabbing protest on October 23. Larger protests are scheduled for the 17th and 18th of this month.
The result has been a dramatic shift in public opinion, which polls had consistently shown to favor homosexual “marriage” and adoption. According to a recent poll by IFOP commissioned by Le Figaro magazine, opposition to homosexual adoption has increased by ten percentage points in just one month, resulting in a majority of 52% opposed. In apparent response to the outcry, the socialists have delayed a debate on the bill until next year.
Cardinal André Vingt-Trois
Cardinal Vingt-Trois is urging people to contact their representatives and make known their opposition to what the socialists have dubbed “marriage for all.”
“A vision of the human person that doesn’t recognize sexual differences would be a deception that would shake one of the foundations of our society and establish a form of discrimination against children,” Vingt-Trois told the press recently.
Denouncing the “ostentatious pressure of certain lobbies,” Vingt-Trois added: “This wouldn’t be ‘marriage for all,’ it would be marriage imposed on all by a few.”
“We continue to appeal to Christians and to all of those who share our perspective and our concerns, to contact their representatives by writing personal letters to them, by meeting with them, and expressing their convictions to them,” said Vingt-Trois.
Vingt-Trois’s opposition is echoed by Claude Baty, leder of the Protestant Federation of France, who affirms that “there is, in creation, a will to differentiate the sexes,” and the Chief Rabbi of France, Giles Bernheim, who warns that homosexual activists are seeking to “bring about the definitive disappearance” of sexual differences.
The revolt has also been led by various mayors in more suburban and rural jurisdictions, who have openly stated that they will not perform homosexual “marriages” even if the bill passes. Among the most prominent is Francois Lebel, mayor of the 8th Arrondisement of Paris, who fearlessly defied liberal sensibilities in October to ask: “tomorrow, how will one oppose polygamy in France, a principle that is only taboo in Western civilization? Why will the legal age of the spouses be maintained? And why prohibit marriages within families, pedophilia, incest, which are still common practice in the world?”
The bishop of Toulon-Fréjus, Dominique Rey, says that he has collected 100,000 signatures against homosexual “marriage” and has stated his intention to participate in a protest organized by the Life Alliance, a pro-life and pro-family organization, on November 17.
The following day, the Catholic activist Civitas Institute, which is derided in the French press as a “homophobic” organization because of its denunciation of homosexual behavior, will also demonstrate against the bill. It’s secretary general, Alain Escada, says that individuals from 40 different towns will be bussed in for the event.
