Greece legalizes same-sex marriage

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Protesters attend a rally in Athens, Greece. Associated Press/Photo by Yorgos Karahalis

The Greek parliament on Thursday night voted 176-76 to pass a law that will allow same-sex civil marriage and permit gay couples to adopt children. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis had supported the legislation. Some members of his center-right New Democracy party abstained or voted against the measure. Greece—which recognizes the Eastern Orthodox Church as its “prevailing religion”—is one of the first Orthodox nations to legalize same-sex marriage. It joins 15 other European Union nations that permit homosexual couples to legally marry.

Are Greek citizens unified behind the effort? Recent polls show the country is divided on same-sex marriage. One poll conducted for Proto Thema newspaper found that 55 percent of respondents support gay marriage, while another poll carried out by Metron Analysis showed that 69 percent of respondents oppose parenthood by same-sex couples. Meanwhile, the Greek Orthodox Church has said the bill is contrary to Christian values and traditional family structure.

Read our previous coverage: Greek parliament to vote on legalizing same-sex marriage

Dig deeper: Listen to John Stonestreet and Nick Eicher discuss international laws about same-sex marriage on The World and Everything in It podcast.

Lauren Canterberry

Lauren Canterberry is a reporter for WORLD. She graduated from the World Journalism Institute and the University of Georgia with a degree in journalism, both in 2017. She worked as a local reporter in Texas and now lives in Georgia with her husband.