(RNS) The Alliance of Baptists, a progressive Baptist group, has adopted a statement in favor of same-sex marriage.

“... (W)e of the Alliance of Baptists decry the politicization of same-sex marriage in the current presidential contest and other races for public office,” the group declared in a brief statement adopted April 17 at its annual meeting in Dayton, Ohio.

“We specifically reject the proposed amendments to the Constitution of the United States and state constitutions that would enshrine discrimination against sexual minorities and define marriage in such a way as to deny same-sex couples a legal framework in which to provide for one another and those entrusted to their care.”

The Washington-based alliance, which grew out of a protest of the conservative leadership of the Southern Baptist Convention, is a member of the National Council of Churches.