Catholics played a pivotal role in the success of Proposition 8

SAN FRANCISCO — Catholics played a pivotal role in the success of Proposition 8—the ballot measure that bans same-sex marriage—from pulpits down to the pews. Bishops lobbied for its passage, priests preached about it, and lay people overwhelmingly voted for it.

Yet not all have been joyful in Bay Area parishes.

The Bay Area has a large and vibrant gay Catholic community, and they have many allies among straight Catholics. So it has led some to question how the region's dioceses, which include myriad diverse groups, could be opposed to what many view as secular rights.

"It makes me very, very, very disenchanted with the Archdiocese (of San Francisco) as an institution," said Kevin Sullivan, 50, who said the archdiocese brought him back to the faith of his childhood. "It's very frustrating to be a gay Catholic and to have to apologize to everyone I know about Proposition 8."

The demographics of the Bay Area are not so unlike those of other urban dioceses around the nation—their politics lean much further left than the church's teaching. But the recent election has brought that tension to the fore over issues that reach beyond Prop. 8.

In September, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., a Catholic, was rebuked by bishops around the nation for saying the church hasn't always preached that life begins at conception; the bishops said that has always been the belief. And the Bay Area, which has a number of gay-friendly parishes, as a whole voted against Prop. 8 despite the position of area bishops.

For many Catholics who voted no on the measure, it was particularly painful that San Francisco Archbishop George Niederauer, the former bishop of Salt Lake City, played a pivotal role in bringing the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints into the Prop. 8 battle. The alliance had a powerful effect on the election—Mormons contributed up to half of the $40 million raised to support the measure.

"I don't think anyone was prepared for that," said Paul Riofski, 51, of Antioch, a married gay man who is co-chair of DignityUSA, an advocacy group for gay and lesbian Catholics. "That was a total shock. It's crossing denominational lines to remove the civil rights of its own members ... it contradicts the sense of inclusion that people feel in parishes that are supportive and welcoming."