DENVER — In November, Coloradans will be asked to remove a same-sex marriage ban from the state constitution, and dozens of faith leaders in Colorado have announced they support the repeal.
The Rev. Jerry Butler, an ordained elder with the United Methodist Church, is one of the individuals who supports the removal of the ban.
"I would say that when you really start peeling back scripture on the LGBTQ issue in particular, a lot of those arguments start to break down pretty quickly, when you start looking at it in a meaningful way," Butler said.
He was one of nearly 80 faith leaders that have penned a letter in support of Amendment J, which would remove the ban. Rabbi Joseph Black from Temple Emmanuel also signed on.
"I believe as a person of faith that all human beings are created in the image of God," Black said. "I can't understand how two people of the same gender getting married will hurt somebody."
The Colorado constitution defines a union as between a man and a woman. It hasn't been enforceable since the 2015 Supreme Court ruling that legalized same-sex marriage nationwide. Should that landmark decision be overturned, there would be no state protection for same-sex couples.
Black has heard the arguments against the measure that have claimed religious beliefs as their reason to oppose it.
"It just surprises me that there are still people holding on to archaic beliefs and using religion to justify, punish and frankly hurt people," he said. "Some of the most active and important members of our congregation are LGBTQ+, and we wouldn't change that for a second."
> Read the letter below:
According to the Colorado Secretary of State, in addition to the candidate votes and the repeal of the same-sex marriage ban, there are 13 other statewide ballot measures in the 2024 General Election.