Cardinal Francis George spoke out against the "redefinition of marriage" this morning, joined by a number of African-American pastors who are opposed to legalizing gay marriage in Illinois.



The head of the Chicago Catholic archdiocese said legally changing the Biblical meaning of marriage "will not serve the common good of our people and will certainly lose the sense of family that is the basis of our understanding of who we are."



George said the nature of marriage "goes back to a sexual expression based upon the complementarity of men and women."



"Anything outside of that is morally wrong," he said.



The group of church leaders said they chose to speak out because staying silent might mean appearing they condone legalizing gay marriage.



"We love people, period, but there are certain principals we must stand on," said Bishop Willie James Campbell, of the Chicago-based Church of God in Christ. "We are biblically, spiritually against it. The Bible is our guide, our road map."



Campbell said he and the religious leaders that joined him don't hate anyone and hope people don't hate them for taking a stand on their beliefs.



Bishop Lance Davis, senior pastor of the New Zion Christian Fellowship Church of Dolton, said the potential legalization of gay marriage is a serious issue that is polarizing ministers into a position of being considered bigots.



"We are people who love our congregation. We are people who love people, no matter where they come from," Davis said. "Nature and the Bible dictate our stance today. It is not our personal opinion about the lifestyles of any individual that comes in our church or outside of our church. It is merely based upon the word of God."



The group of pastors, part of the newly-formed African-American Clergy Coalition, met with the Cardinal for a private meeting following the press conference Friday.



Bishop John Bryant of the African Methodist Episcopal Church, Pastor Kenneth Giles of the Greater New Mount Olive Baptist Church, Pastor Andrew Singleton of Victory Apostolic Church, Pastor Byron Brazier, of the Apostolic Church of God, Bishop Horace Smith, Presiding Bishop of the Pentecostal Assemblies of the World, Bishop Larry Trotter, Presiding Prelate of the New Century Fellowship International and Pastor Steven Thurston of the National Baptist Convention USA also joined the Cardinal Friday morning at the Chicago Archdiocese Quigley Center on Rush Street.



Pastor James Meeks of the Salem Baptist Church of Chicago arrived after the press conference for the private meeting with Cardinal George.



bdoyle@tribune.com