"I would say, 'Yeah, I'm not going to close the hospital, you're going to arrest me, go right ahead," he said. "'You'll have to drag me out, go right ahead. I'm not closing this hospital, we will not perform abortions, and you can go take a flying leap.'"

Liberal Protestantism in the Northwest, as depicted through Wellman's interviews, looks similar to liberalism elsewhere. Jesus is understood to be a model of "radical inclusiveness," and decision making about faith and personal morality is left to the individual. Likewise, evangelicalism in Washington and Oregon fits the larger pattern, with its emphasis on the authority of scripture, a personal relationship with Christ, traditional values and the heterosexual family.

Why? Here are my theories:

(1) Blacks are much more likely than whites to attend church, according to a Gallup report, and black women are much more likely to attend church than black men. Anyone who has ever been to a black church can attest to the disparity in the pews. And black women's church attendance may be increasing.

Other religious groups, such as the Roman Catholic Church, many Evangelicals, and the Mormons, favored the constitutional amendment.

Proposition 8 was adopted by a majority of California voters on November 8th, along with marriage amendments in Florida and Arizona. Thirty states have adopted constitutional amendments defining marriage.

UM Action Executive Director Mark Tooley commented: