I am proud of my president. I am proud of my president’s open heart and evolving mind. We live in a time when the courage to speak out in affirmation of the simple human emotion of love is complicated and politically charged.

I invite all readers who are remain conflicted about same-sex marriage to do as President Barack Obama did: Listen to the stories of people who love someone of the same sex. Bear witness to the lives of people who have been committed to their partners for years. Bear witness to the lives of same-sex parents who raise children in homes where loving moms and loving dads tuck them into bed each night.

Open your heart and your mind to bear witness to story of love and commitment.

Examine your discomfort and ask yourself, “In a world filled with hate, why am I so afraid to affirm and celebrate love?”

As a board member of the Religious Coalition Against Discrimination, I serve a statewide network of more than 250 clergy from 18 faith traditions who have signed the Religious Declaration for the Freedom to Marry. As the minister of Unitarian Universalist Community Church of Augusta, I stand with my denomination and my congregation in support of same-sex marriage.

Sharing the supportive love of another human being is essential to human dignity and fulfillment.

My faith calls me to stand on the side love in action, affirmation and celebration. My faith in human goodness and my agency in life everlasting, calls me to act on behalf of love everlasting.

Join me, join us, join your president in support of loving committed same-sex relationships.

The Rev. Carie Johnsen

Augusta

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