MADRID, Sept. 28 (UPI) -- The Spanish government's plans to legalize same-sex marriage was lambasted by the Roman Catholic Church, the BBC reported Tuesday.
A spokesman for Spanish bishops, Juan Antonio Martinez Camino called for the government cabinet to reject the move, which could be approved as early as this week.
"It would impose on society a virus, something false, which will have negative consequences for social life," Camino said.
If passed by cabinet, the government said same-sex marriages could begin taking place as early as next year.
Socialist Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero took office in April, having been elected on a platform of removing what he called the church's undeniable advantages and a vow to create streamlined divorce and relaxations in abortion law.
The Vatican's influence on Spaniards has declined since the death in 1975 of dictator General Francisco Franco, whose regime maintained close links with the church.
