Marriage: A Spiritual Leading for Lesbian, Gay, and Straight Couples

Friends in many meetings are revising the definition of marriage to include same-sex couples. In reaching clearness, seekers ask: What is the meaning and purpose of marriage? How is the institution of Quaker marriage relevant today for gay, lesbian, and straight couples? Friends do not answer these questions with one voice as they move toward unity. Since 1983, meetings so geographically distant as Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and Transvaal, South Africa, have recorded inclusive marriage minutes and held ceremonies for same-sex couples. The Quaker group, Friends for Lesbian and Gay Concerns, has compiled a chronological survey of minutes on homosexuality and inclusive marriage within the Religious Society of Friends worldwide. Members of these meetings have reshaped a tradition which is over three hundred years old.