Contact: Don Feder, Communications Director, 508-405-1337, dfeder@rcn.com; Judy Hodge, 815-964-5819, media@worldcongress.org; both with World Congress of Families 

ROCKFORD, Ill., April 12, 2012 /Christian Newswire/ -- Christian Concern is a founding member of Coalition for Marriage. The Coalition's "Don't Play Politics With Marriage" Petition has reached over 407,000 signatures.

In response to Conservative Prime Minister David Cameron's plans to legalize so-called same-sex marriage in the United Kingdom, the petition states: "I support the legal definition of marriage which is the voluntary union for life of one man and one woman to the exclusion of all others. I oppose any attempt to redefine it."

It's government policy for e-petitions with more than 100,000 signatures to be considered for debate in the House of Commons. To date, the Coalition's petition has been signed by four times that number.

At an Easter reception on April 3, Cameron met with a group of Christian leaders. In the face of strong opposition to his plan, the prime minister assured them that he only wanted to introduce homosexual "marriage" in registrar offices, not in churches. The leaders responded that such assurances are meaningless -- that the nation's equality laws would inevitably create the impetus for allowing such ceremonies in churches as well.

Conservative M.P. Nadine Dorries noted that a recent poll showed 57% of Christians are ready to abandon the Conservative Party over the move, which 70% of the nation opposes.

"The fact is that many people now look at the Conservative party and are reeling with the realization that this modern party is the one they don't know, didn't vote for and no longer represents their views," Dorries declared. She added, "They don't recognize the values, are confused by the policies and repelled by the elitism."

A World Congress of Families Partner, Christian Concern is planning a May 23rd conference, "One Man, One Woman: Presenting A Compelling Case for Protecting Marriage" at The Law Society in London.

The discussion will include: "Remembering the Nature of Marriage" (with historical and legal perspectives), "Observing The State of Marriage" (judicial, sociological and global perspectives) and "Making the Case for Marriage" (from a policy, media and political standpoint). The conference will conclude with a panel discussion on "Constructing a Compelling Case for Marriage" and will be followed by a reception in the House of Lords.

Speakers will include: Peter Duckworth (barrister specializing in family law), Sir Paul Coleridge (High Court Justice, family division), Harry Benson (Bristol Community Family Trust), Phillip Blond (director of ResPublica think tank), Cristina Odone (former editor of The Catholic Herald and former deputy editor of The New Statesman) and Dr. Allan C. Carlson (founder and international secretary, World Congress of Families).

Word Congress of Families Managing Director Larry Jacobs commented: "This will be our third regional event in the U.K. and the second sponsored by Christian Concern, under the dynamic leadership of Andrea Minichiello Williams. We are proud to be allied with Christian Concern, which is taking such a forceful and effective role in preserving marriage in Britain."

The "One Man, One Woman" conference will be held two days before World Congress of Families VI (May 25-27) in Madrid. WCF VI will include plenary sessions on "The Case for Marriage" and "The Homosexual Lobby: Economic, Social and Sociological Impact." To register for World Congress of Families www.worldcongress.org/registration.

For more information on World Congress of Families go to www.worldcongress.org.  To schedule an interview with Larry Jacobs, contact Communications Director Don Feder at 508-405-1337, dfeder@rcn.com or Judy Hodge 815-964-5819, media@worldcongress.org.

The World Congress of Families (WCF) is an international network of pro-family organizations, scholars, leaders and inter-faith people of goodwill from more than 80  countries that seek to restore the natural family as the fundamental social unit and the 'seedbed' of civil society (as found in the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1948).  The WCF was founded in 1997 by Allan Carlson and is a project of The Howard Center for Family, Religion & Society in Rockford, Illinois.  To date, there have been five World Congresses of Families -- Prague (1997), Geneva (1999), Mexico City (2004), Warsaw, Poland (2007) and Amsterdam, The Netherlands (2009). 

World Congress of Families VI will be held in Madrid, Spain in May 25-27, 2012.