Originally published 2022-05-27.
On 23 May 2022, the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland voted 274 to 136 to allow its ministers and deacons to conduct same-sex marriages. It was the first time in the Church's history that clergy could officiate at weddings of same-sex couples, eight years after such marriages became legal in Scotland.
The change is opt-in. Ministers and deacons who wish to officiate must apply to become authorised celebrants, and no one is required to take part against their conscience. Here is what the decision means, how the Church reached it, and why it mattered to supporters and opponents.
What the 2022 vote changed
The Assembly, meeting in Edinburgh, approved an overture formally titled the Solemnisation of Same Sex Marriage Overture. According to the Church's own announcement, it allows ministers and deacons to apply, through the office of the Principal Clerk, to be registered as celebrants of same-sex marriages. The Church then applies to the Registrar General for Scotland on their behalf, and the authorisation must be renewed every three years.
Two safeguards were central to the law. First, no minister or deacon has to participate in a same-sex marriage, or in arranging one, unless they explicitly choose to. Second, a church building can be used for same-sex weddings only with the consent of a parish minister who has become a celebrant.
The Church's Legal Questions Committee was asked to prepare guidance, and its Faith Nurture Forum to draft a suggested liturgy for such ceremonies.
How the Church reached the decision
Major changes to Church of Scotland law go through a two-stage process known as the Barrier Act, which dates back to 1697. A proposal approved by the General Assembly must be sent to the presbyteries, the regional church courts, before it can return for a final vote. In this case, presbyteries approved the overture by 29 to 12 before the Assembly's decisive vote in 2022.
The road to that point took more than a decade:
- 2009: The Assembly upheld, by 326 votes to 267, the appointment of Rev Scott Rennie to Queen's Cross Church in Aberdeen, making him the Church's first openly gay minister in a same-sex relationship, but it also imposed a moratorium on further such appointments while a commission studied the issue.
- 2011: A theological commission was set up to examine the question.
- 2013 to 2015: The Assembly agreed that congregations could choose ministers in civil partnerships.
- 2016: The Assembly extended this to ministers in same-sex marriages.
- 2018: The Assembly asked for church law to be drafted allowing ministers to conduct same-sex weddings.
- 2021: The draft was approved and sent to the presbyteries.
- 2022: Final approval, 274 to 136.
Voices from the debate
The Assembly was divided, and both sides spoke from conviction. Rev Scott Rennie, who had been at the centre of the 2009 controversy, urged members to back the change. Speaking about his own marriage, he told the Assembly that his relationship with his husband, David, sustains his ministry, and that a same-sex marriage is "much the same as opposite sex marriage in its joys and its glories."
Supporters such as Rev Lezley Stewart argued that the Church had debated long enough. Opponents, including Rev Phil Gunn, argued that the overture was not biblical and departed from the Church's traditional teaching on marriage. The Moderator that year, Rt Rev Dr Iain Greenshields, said the Church was committed to holding debates on the subject in a spirit of humility and grace.
The large majority did not end the disagreement, and some congregations and ministers who oppose the change have said so publicly. The conscience protections were written precisely so that both views could remain within the same Church.
Same-sex marriage law in Scotland
The Scottish Parliament passed the Marriage and Civil Partnership (Scotland) Act in 2014. It took effect on 16 December 2014, and the first same-sex weddings took place on 31 December that year. The law allowed religious bodies to conduct same-sex marriages if they chose to, while protecting those that did not.
Several faith groups opted in earlier than the Church of Scotland. The Scottish Episcopal Church changed its canon on marriage in June 2017, adding a conscience clause for its clergy, and held its first same-sex wedding in Edinburgh that August. Other bodies, including the Roman Catholic Church and the Free Church of Scotland, continue to teach that marriage is between a man and a woman.
Why it matters beyond Scotland
The Church of Scotland is the country's national church and one of the historic churches of the Reformed tradition, so its choices are watched by Presbyterian churches elsewhere. It joined churches such as the Presbyterian Church (USA), which made a similar change in 2015, in allowing its clergy to marry same-sex couples.
The vote also came at a time of steep decline in membership. The Church has lost members every year for decades, and its leaders have spoken about the need to be a welcoming presence in local communities. Supporters saw the change as part of that; critics feared it would deepen divisions.
If you are planning a church wedding
The law allows, but does not oblige, any individual minister to officiate. A couple hoping to marry in a Church of Scotland parish should speak first to the local minister, who can explain whether they are an authorised celebrant and whether the building is available. Each authorisation is personal and time-limited, so it is worth checking current arrangements well before setting a date. Couples can also find celebrants through other faith groups or civil and belief-based ceremonies, all of which are legally recognised in Scotland.
Sources: Church of Scotland: General Assembly approves scheme (May 2022); BBC News (May 2022); Wikipedia: Same-sex marriage in Scotland; Wikipedia: Church of Scotland; Wikipedia: Scott Rennie.
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