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WASHINGTON, D.C. — Catholic leaders rejected President Barack Obama's May 9 declaration in a television interview that "personally it is important for me to go ahead and affirm that I think same-sex couples should be able to get married."

"President Obama's words today are not surprising since they follow upon various actions already taken by his administration that erode or ignore the unique meaning of marriage," said Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan of New York, president of the U.S. bishops' conference, in a May 9 statement.

"We cannot be silent in the face of words or actions that would undermine the institution of marriage, the very cornerstone of our society," Cardinal Dolan added. "The people of this country, especially our children, deserve better."

In December 2010, Obama said his views on same-sex "marriage" were "evolving" and that he "struggles with this," adding he would continue thinking about the issue. An Associated Press story May 10 quoted Obama as saying he wanted to announce his support for such unions "in my own way, on my own terms" but acknowledged earlier remarks by Vice President Joe Biden prompted his announcement.

On May 6, Biden, a Catholic, said he was "absolutely comfortable" with same-sex couples marrying, adding they should get "the same exact rights" heterosexual married couples receive.

The Catholic Church upholds the sanctity of traditional marriage as being only between one man and one woman, and also teaches that any sexual activity outside of marriage is sinful.

"I pray for the president every day, and will continue to pray that he and his administration act justly to uphold and protect marriage as the union of one man and one woman," Cardinal Dolan said. "May we all work to promote and protect marriage and by so doing serve the true good of all persons."

In a May 9 statement, the Archdiocese of Washington said it "opposes the redefinition of marriage based on the clear understanding that the complementarity of man and woman is intrinsic to the meaning of marriage. The word 'marriage' describes the exclusive and lifelong union of one man and one woman open to generating and nurturing children. Other unions exist, but they are not marriage."

In its statement, the archdiocese said it would "continue to strongly advocate for the federal government's existing definition of marriage as the union of one man and one woman," adding it supports efforts undertaken by those who uphold the traditional meaning of marriage."

One such effort is a petition drive in the state of Maryland to overturn a law passed earlier this year to allow same-sex "marriage" in the state. The archdiocese covers five Maryland counties in addition to the District of Columbia.

The Maryland Marriage Alliance said May 2 that a petition to put the law to a vote had collected more than 30,000 voter signatures. Nearly 56,000 valid signatures are needed by June 30 to add the referendum to the November ballot, with half due May 31 to the Maryland State Board of Elections.

"For us in Maryland, the vote on marriage this November has nothing to do with politics," said Mary Ellen Russell, executive director of the Maryland Catholic Conference, in a May 9 statement. "It will be a vote on the issue of marriage itself." She added, "The definition of marriage is not a matter of politics. It is a matter of values and the foundation of society and family."

In Washington state, signatures were being gathered for a referendum challenging a new Washington state law that legalized same-sex "marriage." Opponents of the law have until June 6 to gather 121,577 signatures to suspend the law until the public makes a decision about it on Election Day in November. Otherwise the law takes effect June 7.

On May 8, North Carolina voters approved a constitutional amendment defining marriage as a union between one man and one woman by a 3-to-2 margin. According to an initial tally by the North Carolina State Board of Elections, 1,303,952 people -- 61.05 percent -- voted for the amendment while 831,788 people -- 38.95 percent -- voted against it.

The amendment read, "Marriage between one man and one woman is the only domestic legal union that shall be valid or recognized in this state." It enshrines the definition of traditional marriage in the state constitution, elevating it from what has been state law since 1996.

Read the full story on the North Carolina marriage amendment vote.

The outcome in North Carolina "affirms the authentic and timeless meaning of marriage," said Bishop Salvatore J. Cordileone of Oakland, Calif., chairman of the U.S. bishops' Subcommittee on the Promotion and Defense of Marriage.

"(It) demonstrates people's awareness of the essential role that marriage, as the union of a man and a woman, plays for the common good," Bishop Cordileone said in a May 10 statement. Marriage is "not a partisan issue," he said, "but a matter of justice, fairness and equality for the law to uphold every child's basic right to be welcomed and raised by his or her mother and father together."

In other reaction to Obama's support for same-sex "marriage," Bishop W. Francis Malooly of Wilmington, Del., wrote a letter to Catholics in the diocese reiterating the church's teaching against same-sex "marriage," noting that is shared by many other Christian denominations and "millions of people" who are not Christian or have no religious faith.

"The discussion of marriage and, in particular, same-sex 'marriage' in the United States is being framed in terms of human civil rights. There is no question that all of us are endowed by our creator with human rights and dignity. But marriage cannot be defined only in terms of civil rights. It is much more," the bishop said.

"Marriage has two purposes: the good of the spouses and procreation of children. The church teaches that marriage is both unitive and procreative and that it is inseparably both," Bishop Malooly said.

"The procreative purpose of marriage recognizes that married love is, by its nature, life-giving and children are the supreme gift of marriage. Male and female complementarity is essential to marriage. ... Attempts to make same-sex unions the equivalent of marriage disregard the true nature and purpose of marriage."

Across the country the views of many Catholics appear to be trending toward support of same-sex "marriage."

A March poll conducted jointly by the Public Religion Research Institute and Religion News Service found overall Catholic support for same-sex "marriage" to be 59 percent, with 36 percent of Catholics opposed. Support by Americans overall is at 52 percent, with 44 percent opposed. Among white Catholics, 57 percent support same-sex "marriage" and 37 percent oppose it.

The demographic groups that showed majority opposition to same-sex "marriage" were respondents aged 65 and up, white evangelicals, Republicans, African-Americans, and those with a high school education or less. In addition, pluralities of men and "minority Christian" affiliations said they were opposed.

According to polls conducted over the past five years by Gallup, ABC-The Washington Post, NBC-The Wall Street Journal, CNN-Opinion Research Center and the Pew Research Center, public support for same-sex "marriage" has risen from 40 percent in 2006 to majority support today.

— Mark Pattison, Catholic News Service