Same-sex marriage in Germany
The benefits granted by these partnerships were gradually extended by the Federal Constitutional Court throughout several rulings until they provided for most, but not all, of the rights of marriage.
On 12 October 2004, the Registered Life Partnership Law (Revision) Act (German: Gesetz zur Überarbeitung des Lebenspartnerschaftsrechts) was passed by the Bundestag, increasing the rights of registered life partners to include, among others, the possibility of stepchild adoption and simpler alimony and divorce rules, but excluding the same tax benefits as in a marriage.
It stipulated that the tax inequality between same-sex life partners and opposite-sex married couples would be repealed and the Constitutional Court's ruling of 22 October would be codified into law.
[18] On 6 June 2013, the Constitutional Court ruled that registered partners should have joint tax filing benefits equal to those of married opposite-sex couples.
[25] Another law to grant same-sex couples full tax equality passed unanimously in the Bundestag, finishing the required legal changes following the June 2013 court ruling.
[35][36][37] The Free Democratic Party (FDP) supports same-sex marriage, though it rejected legislation when they were part of a coalition government with the CDU/CSU between 2009 and 2013.
[35] In March 2010, the Senate of Berlin announced its intention to introduce a same-sex marriage bill in the Bundesrat, the federal representation of the German states.
In June 2011, the Senate of Hamburg, following CDU losses in state elections around the country, also announced its intention to introduce a same-sex marriage bill in the Bundesrat.
[46] On 22 March 2013, the Bundesrat passed a bill proposed by 5 states (Hamburg, Lower Saxony, North Rhine-Westphalia, Rhineland-Palatinate and Schleswig-Holstein) to open marriage to same-sex couples.
The new Bundestag, inaugurated on 22 October, again consisted of a theoretical majority of parties in favour of same-sex marriage (SPD, The Left and the Greens).
The Left immediately introduced a bill to legalise same-sex marriage, but the SPD did not support it in order to not jeopardise negotiations on government formation.
[52] On 5 June 2015, nine states (Baden-Württemberg, Brandenburg, Bremen, Hamburg, Lower Saxony, North Rhine-Westphalia, Rhineland-Palatinate, Schleswig-Holstein and Thuringia) submitted a same-sex marriage bill to the Bundesrat.
[59] In March 2017, the SPD, the junior partner in the coalition government, announced they would press the CDU to legalise same-sex marriage in the face of overwhelming public support.
On 20 June 2017, the Federal Constitutional Court rejected an application by the Greens for an injunction ordering the Legal Affairs Committee to send bills legalising same-sex marriage to lawmakers for a vote in Parliament's last pre-election session.
[62] On 17 June 2017, the Greens pledged not to participate in any governing coalition after the 2017 elections unless the legalisation of same-sex marriage was part of the agreement.
[38][69] Shortly after her statement, several politicians, including SPD Leader Martin Schulz, pressured for a vote to be held in the last week of June during the final legislative session before summer recess.
The SPD de facto breached the coalition agreement and planned on voting with the opposition parties to legalise same-sex marriage.
These concerns were dismissed by Federal Justice Minister Heiko Maas, who argued that Article 6(1) neither defines the term "marriage" nor rules out a wider definition.
[103] Following the passage of the law, the Bavarian Government and the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party both said they would consider petitioning the court for a judicial review (abstrakte Normenkontrolle).
Several Green and CDU/CSU lawmakers instead congratulated the thousands of same-sex couples who had married in Germany in the past year, while other MPs criticised the AfD for their proposal, calling it "undemocratic", "wrong", "a cheap political trick at the expense of free society" or even "lazy as hell".
The Left considered the AfD draft to be a "deliberate provocation aimed at denying equal rights to sexual minorities", and the Greens pointed out that there is "broad political and social majority" support for same-sex marriage.
[115] That same month, the AfD presented a motion to the Landtag of Schleswig-Holstein to force the state government to challenge the same-sex marriage law at the Federal Constitutional Court.
However, it offers the Church the opportunity to show appreciation for the love and values that exist in these relationships and thus ask for forgiveness and make reconciliation possible.
[149] Shortly following the vote, the dioceses of Osnabrück,[150] Essen,[151] and Speyer,[152] as well as the Archdiocese of Berlin,[153] announced that their clergy could bless same-sex couples.
It draws a clear line between unwavering fidelity to the teachings of the Church and the pastoral requirements of an ecclesial practice that wants to be close to people.
Bishop of Passau Stefan Oster said the declaration could "help us in the polarized debates on this issue", "As a Catholic Church, in the pastoral walk with these people we usually have a great deficit of understanding, and all too often almost no ability to communicate in the care of souls.
[157] A survey conducted the following month by RTL Television and Stern magazine found that 74% of Germans were supportive of same-sex marriage, with 23% against.
[159] A poll conducted that same month by Ifop showed that 74% of Germans supported allowing same-sex couples to marry and adopt children.
[168] A Pew Research Center poll, conducted between April and August 2017 and published in May 2018, showed that 75% of Germans supported same-sex marriage, 23% were opposed and 2% did not know or had refused to answer.
[172] A Pew Research Center poll conducted between February and May 2023 showed that 80% of Germans supported same-sex marriage, 18% were opposed and 2% did not know or had refused to answer.
