The Danish Supreme Court – the highest court in the country – has ruled today that same-sex marriages in church do not go against the Danish constitution.

Same-sex civil unions have been legally recognized in Denmark since 1989 (the first country in the world to do so).

In 2012, same-sex marriages were legalized, including marriages performed by the Church of Denmark.

Legalization came about through a constitutional amendment that changed the recognition of marriage from solely being between a man and a woman to being between two people.

The 2012 amendment has been challenged by opponents of same-sex marriage as unconstitutional. It wasn’t challenged by the Church of Denmark itself, but by 300 individuals who joined together to form a pressure group, Foreningen Med grundlov Skal Land Bygges.

The individuals have argued that the amendment violates their right to religious freedom. They claimed any same-sex marriages performed by the Church of Denmark since 2012 should be ruled invalid.

They also claimed that their right to religious freedom was protected by European Human Rights legislation.

Today, the Supreme Court disagreed on both counts, and said that the amendment was within the scope of what the Danish Parliament can decide.

‘We welcome the ruling’, said a spokesperson for LGBT Denmark on the advocacy’s group’s Facebook page.

Its Chair, Søren Laursen, told GSN, ‘LGBT Denmark has alway been of the opinion, that there were no errors in the introduction of same-sex marriage in Denmark – only that we had to wait so long to get it.

‘Marriage in Danish law is not a religious institution but a legal framework for the life of a couple. Evidently the Church should not have a veto right.

‘We are happy that the question is now answered once and for all and that the legislation stays as it was created. We are also satisfied that the law gave the religious communities the possibility to wed same-sex couples and that the largest community, the Danish Lutheran Church, decided to use that opportunity.’