Marriage arguments

The Interfaith Coalition on Marriage and Family has filed written legal arguments in the Ontario Court of Appeal in a case to decide whether limiting marriage to heterosexual unions violates the equality rights of gays and lesbians under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

The coalition includes Roman Catholics, evangelical protestant Christians, Muslims and Sikhs. It argues that marriage is understood as being between a man and a woman across all religions and cultures in Canada.

Last July the Ontario Divisional Court declared invalid the recognition of marriage as being between a man and a woman. The court ruled that the common law definition of marriage as the lawful and voluntary union of one man and one woman to the exclusion of all others is constitutionally invalid.

The declaration was suspended for 24 months to allow the Parliament of Canada to rule on the issue. The House of Commons justice committee is holding hearings on the issue.