Tom Matthews, Bob Kelly and Pia de Solenni write in the Seattle Times:

WE are lay Catholic leaders in Washington state. We support and love our Catholic Church and her teachings on marriage. We support our bishops, priests and laity who courageously defend her. When they are seriously misrepresented, our consciences compel us to speak up.

This past Sunday, an ad claiming to represent the views of 1,000 Catholics was published in four major newspapers across the state. While they are entitled to their opinions and beliefs, they do not accurately represent Catholic teaching, nor are they representative of the local Catholic population, which numbers about 1 million.

We oppose Referendum 74 to legalize same-sex marriage on the Nov. 6 ballot, and we represent ourselves, as well as the Seattle Archdiocesan Council of Catholic Women, the Knights of Columbus of Washington State and other leaders.

The Catholic Church teaches that marriage is between one man and one woman. It is a bond that is set apart because it unites the couple in a way that no other bond does. It is also procreative because marital intimacy naturally leads to the birth of children.

... it should be noted that there are currently 9,863 domestic partnerships in Washington, representing only 0.0029 percent of the entire state population.

Not only would Referendum 74 allow the state legislation changing the legal definition of marriage to go into effect, but it could directly affect the First Amendment rights of the U.S. Constitution: the freedoms of religion, conscience and free speech for those who, like us, have different values. We would be forced to accept a legal definition of marriage that signifies a genderless institution."