Catholics in Minnesota are not content to tell other Catholics how to live their lives, they feel it’s their job to “morally guide the broader culture” and are engaging in public campaigns and lobbying legislators for the “good of all people, including those of us of other faiths, or no faith at all.” In the Archdiocese newspaper, the Catholic Spirit, Catholic leaders from around the state are defending their activities and they’re more than happy to impose their beliefs on the rest of us:

Because the church views marriage as a sacrament instituted by God, rooted in Scripture, and affirmed by natural law, changing its view of marriage as something between one man and one woman is outside of its power. And because it seeks to morally guide the broader culture, the church does not support civil gay unions under any title.

“We believe this is an issue not just about the religious meaning of marriage, but the natural, human meaning that affects the common good of all people, including those of us of other faiths, or no faith at all,” Father Michael Skluzacek, pastor of St. John the Baptist in New Brighton, said at the Oct. 27 gathering.

“Every person, no matter what their attraction, is entitled to the same rights, dignity, and respect as everyone else,” he said. “But what the church cannot do, and what we’re saying the state cannot do, is redefine an institution that has been ordained by God and a part of our very nature as human beings. This is not about rights, but about the meaning of an institution, the meaning of marriage — what is it.”