Gay Adoption Controversy

According to ABC News, Catholic Charities of Boston will shut its doors because of pressure from the Catholic Church, which opposes the Massachusetts law that protects the rights of gay couples to adopt a child. The charity has been in operation for 103 years, finding homes for tens of thousands of needy children.

"We find ourselves in a conflict," said the Rev. Bryan Hehir from Catholic Charities. "The religious, moral principles of Catholic teaching and practice clash with the political and civil regulations of the state."

Across the country, churches and grassroot groups are banding together, demanding that legislation is put in place to ban gay couples from adopting children.

Last year, gay adoption bans were introduced in Alabama, Indiana, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia. So far, all those bills have been killed in committee.

According to the American Academy of Pediatrics children's development are influenced more by the nature of the relationships and interactions within the family unit than by the particular structural form it takes. Studies show that children who grow up with one or two gay and or lesbian parents fare as well in emotional, cognitive, social and sexual functioning as do children whose parents are heterosexual.

Currently there are some 126,000 children in foster care who are eligible for adoption each year. Less than half of them find permanent homes.