Twin Cities Catholic Archbishop John Nienstedt and several other faith leaders plan to gather at the state Capitol on Tuesday to speak out in support of the proposed marriage amendment.
The group will hold a 10 a.m. press conference on the south steps of the Capitol, where Nienstedt will be joined by the Rev. Jerry McAfee, president of the Minnesota Baptist Convention; Bishop Richard Howell of Shiloh Temple; Carl Nelson, president of Transform Minnesota--The Evangelical Network; the Rev. Troy Dobbs of Grace Church, Eden Prairie; and the Rev. Sergio Amezcua of Brooklyn Park Evangelical Free Church.
Clergy will be updated on the latest developments in the campaign in support of the marriage amendment and told how they can help with those efforts, according to a letter sent out to clergy and faith leaders from Minnesota for Marriage, the main group working in support of the amendment.
If approved on Nov. 6, the measure would amend the state constitution to define marriage as a union between a man and woman, essentially banning gay marriage.
On the other side of the debate, religious groups in Minnesota not in favor of the amendment have also voiced their opposition.
Key among them is the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, which has close to 800,000 followers in Minnesota. In addition to other Mainline Protestant faiths, a group of Jewish rabbis has also come out opposed to the amendment.
Conservative-leaning Catholics and Evangelicals are among the amendment's fiercest supporters. The Catholic church is the largest religious denomination in Minnesota, with close to 1.1 million followers.
