:dateline:Sikh leaders issued an advisory to temples in the United Kingdom to halt all weddings in response to the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act, which received the queen’s royal assent�last week, according to The Telegraph.
The warning came from the advisory board Sikhs in England, and is only a suggestion to Sikh places of worship, or gurdwaras, to give up their marriage licenses as a preemptive move.
Sikh leaders fear that they could be subject to legal trouble for refusing to perform same-sex marriages, which are forbidden under their teachings.
The Act�includes stipulations intended to protect groups from being forced to perform civil unions � and thus act against their religious beliefs � under a �quadruple lock� of legal protections.
However, Harmander Singh, the director of the Network of Sikh Organizations, expressed concern in a statement to the House of Lords that �the quadruple lock isn�t going to be worth the paper it is written on.� He is doubtful that the provisions will remain in place if challenged by the European Court of Human Rights.
While other religious organizations�also resisted the legislation, the Sikhs are the only group so far to officially advise relinquishing their marriage licenses.
�We have no authority, neither has the government, to change our scriptures,� Singh said. �We are bound by our religious teachings and we have been put in a difficult situation.�
By giving up their status as venues for ceremonies, marriages performed in gurdwaras, Sikh places of worship, would have no legal backing. All Sikh couples would have to attend a separate, licensed ceremony to make their marriage official in the UK.
Singh does not seem to think this will undermine the spiritual validity of future weddings, adding,��Civil marriage is, with respect, a paper exercise.�
