valid marriages if such marriages were not recognized by their home jurisdictions, the Conservative government announced that they would fix this "legislative gap". A government bill, the Civil Marriage of Non-residents Act (), positively declaring such marriages legal in Canada and allowing non-residents to divorce in a Canadian court if prohibited from doing so in their home jurisdictions, was introduced and received first reading on February 17, 2012, and passed third and final reading on June 18, 2013. The bill then received a quick passage through the Senate and passed third and final reading on June 21, receiving royal assent by Governor General David Johnston on June 26.Text of Bill C-32, "An Act to Amend the Civil Marriage Act," Parliament of Canada , accessed October 6, 2013 The law came into effect on August 14 by Order of the Governor General in Council made the previous day. Church and state Based on the 2001 census, 80 percent of the Canadian population were initiated into one of the three main Abrahamic religions (Judaism, Islam, and Christianity).2001 Canadian Census – Long Form, Question 22 , URL accessed December 21, 2011 All three have texts interpreted by some to declare sexual relations between people of the same sex as forbidden and sinful, and have been opposed to the recognition of same-sex unions. However, some major religious groups spoke in favour of legalizing same-sex marriage. The largest Protestant denomination in the country, the United Church of Canada, offers church weddings to same-sex couples and supports same-sex marriages, testifying to this effect during the cross-country Justice Committee hearings. Unitarian Universalist congregations also solemnize same-sex marriages, as do the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), the Metropolitan Community Church and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada. Some progressive Jewish congregations have also supported same-sex marriage. The General Synod of the Anglican Church of Canada passed an initial motion in July 2016 to perform same-sex marriages in their churches. The measure had to be approved a second time at the next General Synod in 2019 to come into force. The Anglican Church of Canada does not specifically prohibit same-sex marriage. On July 12, 2019, the General Synod did not approve the motion at its second reading. In spite of support by the laity and clergy, the motion did not pass because it was not supported by a full two-thirds of the bishops. Director of Communications Meghan Kilty said