IN SYDNEY'S often conservative Anglican diocese, ''Fighting Father Dave'' Smith seems to stand out. He is a religious minister, a former professional boxer and he openly supports same-sex marriage.
''To me, the institution of marriage is supposed to be about social stability and providing a good nurturing environment for children,'' the Dulwich Hill priest said.
''It seems to me that allowing gay people to form more committed relationships can only be positive in that regard.''
His views clashed with those of his Archbishop, Dr Peter Jensen, who expressed his profound disappointment yesterday with Labor's endorsement of gay marriage at the weekend.
''This is not a matter of equality, but of trying to force respect by changing the definition of one of the fundamentals of our society,'' he said. ''I hope MPs will use the conscience vote to send a powerful signal of support for the integrity and true meaning of marriage.''
While the condemnation from many senior religious leaders to the party's decision has been near universal, in this fight not all of their faith communities could be in their corner.
The Christian Research Association director Philip Hughes said a national survey by the Australian National University in 2009 found 37 per cent of Catholics and 40 per cent of Anglicans thought sexual relationships between two adults of the same sex was always wrong, while 32 and 27 per cent respectively thought they weren't.
A recent Galaxy Research poll commissioned by Australian Marriage Equality showed a majority of Christians supported gay marriage (53 per cent), while another commissioned by the Ambrose Centre for Religious Liberty placed religious support much lower (35 per cent).
Ethnic leaders said their communities would be divided over Labor's decision to approve same-sex marriage.
The executive director of the Arab Council of Australia, Randa Kattan, welcomed the decision personally, saying, ''I think it is fine. It is great that this part of society is welcomed and acknowledged.''
But she also acknowledged that the issue of homosexual union had also been a taboo in parts of the Australian-Arab community. ''It is now something that will have to be discussed,'' she said.
She said Arab Christians, who include Maronite Catholics and Eastern Orthodox, would be as divided as Muslim Arabs.
Tia Radrekusa, the chairwoman of the NSW Council for Pacific Communities, said there would probably be a generational divide within Pacific communities, which are traditionally religious with a strong Methodist heritage.
The president of the Islamic Council of NSW, Khaled Sukkarieh, told the Herald that ''… marriage is strictly between a man and a woman and anything else is not permitted.''
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