Navy Rescinds Order To Allow Chaplains To Conduct Gay Marriages

The Navy has rescinded that order pending “further … policy review”:

The Navy has abruptly reversed its decision to allow chaplains to perform same-sex marriages once the military’s ban on openly gay service members is lifted, after dozens of House lawmakers complained.

Rear Adm. Mark Tidd, chief of Navy chaplains, issued a one-sentence memo Tuesday announcing that the earlier decision has been “suspended until further notice pending additional legal and policy review and inter-Departmental coordination.”

A senior Navy official told Fox News the legal counsel determined the suspension would be necessary “until broader legal and policy questions are answered.”

The original memo would have allowed for Navy chaplains to perform gay marriages in states where it is legal only after the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy is repealed. Military training to apply the new law allowing gays to serve openly began earlier this year and is expected to be completed by midsummer.

But 63 House members wrote to Navy Secretary Ray Mabus to object to the Navy’s initial ruling, saying the service was violating the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act by appearing to recognize and support same-sex marriages.

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