How do you like this? Same-sex marriage IS ALLOWED on your property, whether you like it or not

Two farm owners in upstate New York have been slammed with a lawsuit and fines in upwards of $10,000 after they refused to allow a lesbian couple to be married on their farm.

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - Cynthia and Robert Gifford, owners of the bucolic Liberty Ridge Farm would not allow a lesbian couple to have a wedding ceremony on their property, and subsequently were fined by the state of New York.

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In 2012, Cynthia received a call from a woman named Melisa Erwin, who wanted to hold her wedding at the Gifford's farm.

Erwin's partner-now wife-Jennifer McCarthy recorded the conversation, including Cynthia's polite declination, and the couple then filed a formal complaint with the New York Division of Human Rights.

In August, a judge decided to fine the Gifford's $10,000 for the State, and $1,500 to each of the two women, after declaring the farm a "public accommodation" and stating that the Giffords had violated state discrimination laws.

The Gifford have defended themselves against personal attacks too.

"We respect and care for everyone," said Cynthia. "We had an openly gay man working for us this past season."

"We've had a woman who's transitioning to be a man. We don't discriminate against anyone."

About fifteen years ago, the Giffords opened their farm near Albany to the public. They host an annual fall festival and offer things like pig racing and a corn maze. In the summer, wedding ceremonies and receptions are also held on the farm, but after currently booked weddings take place, the farm will not host anymore.

"This is scary," Cynthia said. "It's scary for all Americans."

This is not the first time that homosexual equivalency has triumphed an individual's personal rights and freedoms. Christian bakers, florists and photographers have all faced lawsuits and fines when they refused to perform services for homosexual wedding ceremonies.

"We've gone from tolerance to compulsion," said the Gifford's lawyer, James Trainor. "State government should not be forcing people to violate their own religious beliefs, nor should they be forced to make a choice between making a living and violating their own faith."

"I think there is an effort under way to change the social order," he continued. "One way is by redefining marriage."

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