More than 100 Minnesota religious leaders convened Thursday to begin their campaign to defeat the proposed constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage.

Leaders from dozens of churches and synagogues gathered at Hennepin Avenue United Methodist Church in Minneapolis to discuss how to conduct conversations about the amendment with congregants in the coming months.

"We need to stand up for the freedoms that are guaranteed, for religious freedoms, for freedom for people to marry who they love," said the Rev. Grant Stevensen, faith leader for Minnesotans United for All Families, the lead group opposing the amendment. "We are standing together today against the marriage-denying amendment."

On the opposite side of the issue, the Rev. Jeff Evans, of the pro-amendment Minnesota for Marriage, said that preserving traditional marriage has brought together members of various faiths and "unwavering support from minorities including Somali, Hmong, Liberian, Hispanic and African American."

Minnesotans United for All Families, which opposes the amendment, urged religious leaders to preach on the issue leading up to the November election, hold conversations with congregants about the issue and reach out to other clergy members. Amendment opponents also urged them to wage letter-writing campaigns in local newspapers.

BAIRD HELGESON