IT was with great interest that I watched the results of the recent historic referendum in Ireland.

The issue under consideration was, of course, same-sex marriage, and more than 62 % of the population voted ‘Yes’ in favour of it.

I was, to be honest, quite shocked by the result. After all, homosexuality was only decriminalised in Ireland in 1993, showing how far the country has come in just over 20 years.

I lived in Dublin for a number of years when I was younger and have first-hand experience of entrenched attitudes and the iron grip the churches have on some parts of Irish society.

But there was a magical momentum behind the Yes campaign, especially the #hometovote hashtag which became a phenomenon on Twitter.

Those who had felt forced out of their home country because of their sexuality returned proudly, and en masse.

As they boarded trains, planes and boats, Irish people from all over the world documented their journeys, explaining how far they were coming and why it was so important that they were able to make it to their home town in time to cast their vote.

There were some truly wonderful moments of acceptance captured in their images, including the photograph uploaded by one young man who returned home to find that his mum had put a rainbow (a symbol of gay pride) bedspread on his bed and rainbow curtains in his windows.

Now, quite rightly, the spotlight has turned to my own home country, Northern Ireland, and a rally in support of same-sex marriage is due to be held in Belfast.

It is already coming up against strong opposition and many of the churches have released statements detailing their determination to retain traditional marriage, i.e. a marriage between a man and a woman.

As regular readers will know, my brother is gay and in a long-term relationship. His coming out was a major issue in our family, mostly due to his fear that my father would be unable to accept the news, but in fact my dad reacted much better than my mother.

The latter still, to an extent, refuses to accept the situation and rarely discusses my brother’s partner, whereas my dad immediately cried, told my brother he loved him, and has been great about things ever since.

You just don’t know.

In addition to my brother, my best friend is also gay and has been in a long-term relationship for over a decade.

She delayed telling her parents, who were deeply unhappy initially, but things are so improved that when she and her partner ran the London Marathon together this year, crossing the line holding hands, her parents travelled to London to cheer them on from the sidelines.

Surely Christianity is, at its core, about love more than anything else?

Clearly, I view my brother and my friend as my equal, and, as a result, I believe that the marital opportunities which are afforded to me should be extended to them, too.