Church Won't Accept Cash From Catholics Who Voted for Equality

A Catholic bishop is refusing to accept a donation from a New York assemblyman in retribution for his backing of marriage equality.

As he'd been doing for 20 years, Assemblyman Joe Lentol, a Brooklyn Democrat, sent his annual $50 donation to a scholarship fund at the Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish School. But the New York Daily News reports that it got returned with word that Brooklyn bishop Nicholas DiMarzio won't allow any donations from politicians who voted for same-sex marriage.

“I was certainly surprised because I know the church needs the money and the school certainly needs the money for the scholarship program they run,” Lentol told Pix11 News.

The decision comes despite Archbishop Timothy Dolan's claim last week via his blog that "the real forces of intolerance were unmasked" by the marriage equality debate, and he pointed a finger at proponents of the bill.