Washington official calls AP stories ‘misleading’ on Catholic Church efforts to support pro-gender marriage

Washington state official Lori Anderson calls the following AP stories “misleading.”

"Catholic churches can't collect donations to overturn gay marriage law, Washington state rules"

"Washington anti-gay marriage law group encourages 'bundling' donations"

LifeSiteNews reports:

A Washington state official has called an Associated Press report misleading for suggesting that the government was banning the Catholic Church from taking collections to support a traditional marriage initiative. 

An AP report Tuesday entitled “Catholic churches can’t collect donations to overturn gay marriage law, Washington state rules” was widely cited on homosexual news blogs and other outlets this week. Catholic Church leaders in the state are preparing to take collections in September supporting a “no” vote on R-74, which will appear on the November ballot to give voters a chance to endorse or reject the state’s same-sex “marriage” law. 

The report was followed by a Thursday report spotlighting Protect Marriage Washington for supporting the allegedly illegal gift method, with the headline: “Washington anti-gay marriage law group encourages ‘bundling’ donations.” The second article noted that state officials planned to send a letter to church officials and Protect Marriage on the issue. 

But when Lori Anderson, a spokeswoman for the state’s Public Disclosure Commission, was asked whether the agency had ruled against the Catholic Church’s planned collection, she responded, “Oh gosh, no.” 

“The headline is kind of misleading, in my opinion,” said Anderson, the same official cited in the AP’s original report. Anderson told LifeSiteNews.com on Friday that the law means no one collecting from the pews can be employed or recruited by the Catholic Church. “Whoever’s doing that has to be an individual person,” such as a volunteer for Protect Marriage, she said.

The Catholic Church supports marriage between complementary sexes which provides children with both a mother and a father. 

Defend pro-gender marriage.  Because gender matters.