One Million Protest Marriage Equality in Paris: Rousing Success for French Bishops

Update 1.14.13 GMT 0423: originally, we said 650,000 protesters according to Austrian Catholic News Service, but now it's even higher than that.  Although Andrew Cusack doesn't give the Bishops any credit for this, he indicates reports that there are more than one million and maybe more.  The throngs even closed down traffic and a major sporting event.  The title is getting changed too, because a lot of people who are involved in this protest against marriage equality are not only not Catholic, but many of them are simply secularists who for various reasons find themselves opposed to this legislation. Cusack writes:

The protest today was organised by the eccentric comedian Frigide Barjot, founder of the Collectif pour l’humanité durable, joined by gay atheist Xavier Bongibault of the association Plus gay sans mariage (“More Gay Without Marriage”), and Laurence Tcheng of La gauche pour le mariage républicaine(“The Left for Republican Marriage”).

Edit: predictably, the English-speaking press is largely silent or unintersted.  The aberrosexual Huffington Post sets the number of participants at "thousands".  The BBC has been more accurate.  The Washington Post is predictable as well.  The Daily Mail , as usual, is better, points out that this is another real failure for the Socialist President Hollande and has an excellent photographic collage. Even the New York Times was more balanced than usual. This also comes on the heels of Hollande's increasing attacks against the Catholic Church.

Credit: Daily Mail

Here's a translation from the Austrian Catholic News Service:

Paris, 1-13-2013 (KAP) With a demonstration this Sunday in Parish, more than 650,000 Frenchmen, as  organizers have reported, are demonstrating against the introduction of same-sex marriage.  The planners revealed that media reports are amazed at the size of the participants.  Even Church representatives with Cardinal Philippe Barbarin chief among them estimated far fewer.

Already in November France there were hundreds of thousands protesting against so-called homosexual marriage.  The organizer of the demonstration was the independent association "Manifpourtous".  A counter demonstration of those promoting same-sex marriage is planned for the 27th of January.

According to online media in consequence, there were at least a dozen prominent representatives of the conservative opposition party, UMP taking part in the demonstration.  Among them was the party president, Jean-Francois Cope and Ex-Minister of the Interior Brice Ortefeux as well as Euro Minister Laruent Wauqiez.  He wants to hold a plebiscite over the controversial proposal.

In the mean time according to media reports, 115 representatives of the National Assembly have written a petition to President Francois Hollande.  In view of the social divisiveness in this question a referendum is unallowable.

In the preparation with "Manifpourtous" -- Catholic Church representatives have been outspoken against the marriage of or adoption by aberrosexual pairs.  The President of the French Bishops' Conference, Cardinal Andre Vingt-Trois, came to the close of the demonstration at the Place Denfert-Rochereau (at the Eifel Tower) in order to express his thanks to the organizers. Even members of the world religions have been engaged against the broadening of the concept of marriage.

The Ministry Council had adopted a proposed law for the introduction of same-sex marriages and the right of adoption for aberrosexual pairs.  The National Assembly confirmed it at the end of January.  According to the Hollande's desire the new regulation should come into effect in the first half of the year.

In the meantime, the opinion research institute Ifop published a poll, according to which 62 percent of Frenchmen are of the opinion, that there is too much talk about "homosexual-marriage".  The theme takes up too large a space in the social debate, say the majority of those polled.

Link to kathweb...

Note: there are also forces in this march which is readily evident from the photos that are also Revolutinoary, including Brigitte Bardot and her associates with their own opposition to the policies of the Socialist which overlap with the interests of the Church.