Spanish Supreme Court Forces Judge to marry Gay couples

If you still think about Spain as a conservative, Catholic country you can change your mind. Spain is one of the most liberal and secular countries on the planet now, up there with The Netherlands. Gambling, prostitution, are either legal or losely regulated. Even downloading movies and music is legal in Spain. And gay marriage is of course, legal as well. But today a controversy arose when a judge said that, as a Catholic, he objected to marry gay people. Newspaper El Pais reports Judge Pablo de la Rubia asked if he could possibly be excused from marrying gay couples. Surprisingly he was told by the Supreme Court that he had to marry gay couples whether he approved of their marriage or not. The argument went that because it´s legal for gay people to get married as a judge it´s part of his job to marry them. While I see the logic to the argument I think the Supreme Court´s position is too extreme. If Judge De la Rubia thinks it´s wrong for gay people to get married, he should be excused from marrying gay people. Why? For a simple reason that has nothing to do with the law. His demeanor may spoil what could be the happiest moment in the couple´s life. There are enough other judges who will be happy to do the job. The problem with gay marriage, whether in Spain or USA is that the debate many times centers around legal principles. And while doing this people in government forget that what gay marriage is, is the desire of two people to at least try, to live happily ever after.

Comments

[LeftRight]

Sorry, but you're wrong. He has every right as a private citizen to be opposed to gay marriage, but as a judge he has an obligation to carry out his country's policies!

[gaydm]

If a person who wishes to become a soldier suddenly realizes that he may have to actually kill someone in the course of his duties as to being a soldier. Then they maybe should consider another line of work. Maybe the good Catholic Judge should consider resigning his position as a Judge, and enter the priesthood. Seeing as how the Catholic church is in desperate need of priests.

[Martin Varsavsky - Huffpost Blogger]

I am Jewish. Let´s say that this same judge would refuse to marry Jewish people but the government forced him to marry Nina and I. I would not like that, I would not want to be married by an antisemite. I would want him to have to face the consequences of the law, whatever they are, but not to ruin my marriage. That´s my point. Judges who are against the law should be punished by the law, but the punishment cannot include ruining other people´s very special moment in life.

[LMPE]

My mom's right-wing brother refuses to go to Europe because "they're socialists". I suspect that if he somehow ended up on the Old Continent, he'd immediately die of fright.

[FearlessFreep]

What if the only judge in town is too Catholic to marry same-sex couples?

[We-Are-The-Ones]

"Judge Pablo de la Rubia asked if he could possibly be excused from marrying gay couples. Surprisingly he was told by the Supreme Court that he had to marry gay couples whether he approved of their marriage or not."

Yah for the Supreme Court. if Judge de la Rubia does not want to do all of his duties, he should resign. His religious beliefs are irrelevant for the job he is to do. I am glad the Court reminded him of this. If doing his job is too hard for him, good riddance.

[PaiaGirl]

If Judge De la Rubia thinks it´s wrong for gay people to get married, he should be excused from... being a judge

[itmaybetoolate]

Your reasoning is this - it will make him unhappy which might make others unhappy, so let's let him skip that part of his job. I am sure there are many folks who want that deal in their job. If I am a teacher who believes in evolution and not creationism, can I just skip creationism (if it is part of the approved curriculum) because it would cause me and my students to have a bad day in the classroom?

[dexxjones]

vegans would still be required to serve burgers at wendy's this is nonsense. if he gives any indication whatsoever that he is not impartial, then he shouldnt be a judge. and really maybe magical thinkers arent qualified to be judges in the first place?

[SonofLiberty1]

Martin,

Very good!

If the judge feels that it is against his principles to marry gays then he should be allowed the option of not marrying them.

It's not as if he is the only judge.

It's his right to follow his conscience.

[We-Are-The-Ones]

He works for the state and if he cannot follow the laws, he should get another job. His conscience is irrelevant to the people seeking to get married by the State.

If he wants to follow his conscience and this is part of his job, resign.

[SiberianRat]

Yep.

[thebigbike]

Certainly, he has a highly effective way to avoid marrying gay couples. and that is to resign his judgeship since he refuses to perform one of its duties.

[superstition]

Should judges who object to marrying interracial couples be excused? What about judges who object to marrying black couples?

Where should it end? Should a judge be excused if he/she doesn't like the accent of one of the participants?

[WarSkeptic]

Spain really shaped up fast after Franco died
It really is one of the most glaring success stories of the second half of the 20th century. If not the biggest success

[PlaceboStudman]

No one should be forced to marry someone they object to. There are plenty of people in Spain Im sure who are most happy to marry gay couples. If this were a medical doctor being asked to perform an abortion that would save the life of the mother, then yes Id say the doctor would be forced to do it but marriage is not a medical emergency, it is an option, and as such, anyone has the right to deny anyone else the right to marry them.

[WarSkeptic]

He's a judge not a priest

[PlaceboStudman]

I know he's a judge, and I stick by my comments.I believe No one should be forced to do something that is against their personal beliefs unless they are in a medical emergency situation. In this case, a judge is not in the position to save a life or lose a life, so he/she should not be forced to do it.

[We-Are-The-Ones]

Nothing in the law that says you can ignore the law of the State because of your personal belief.

Your analogy is irrelevant. Marriage is a right in Spain, without conditions. It does not have to be an emergency. The judge either does his job or gets a new job. Period.

No one "has the right to deny anyone else the right" to marry. I am glad the Supreme Court reminded him of this basic reality. I hope he quits.