''Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California.''

Chief Justice Ronald George writing for the California Supreme Court which has decided 6 to 1 in favor of the voter-approved ban on gay marriages known as Proposition 8. Some 18,000 marriages that occurred in the few months before November will somehow also remain legal. Proposition 8 narrowly passed with 52 percent of the vote in the last election, and a variety of religious institutions working together are credited for turning out voters including Mormon, Catholic, Evangelical and African-American churches. (Reuters)

''This is a serious blow on religious freedom, and it opens the door for discrimination against any minority.... Nobody I talked to seemed to think the court would go against what it thought was the will of the people.''

Rick Schlosser of California Council for Churches which sought to overturn Propsition 8. (San Francisco Chronicle)

''While I believe that one day either the people or courts will recognize gay marriage, as governor of California I will uphold the decision of the California Supreme Court.... Regarding the 18,000 marriages that took place prior to Proposition 8's passage, the Court made the right decision in keeping them intact. I also want to encourage all those responding to today's Court decision to do so peacefully and lawfully.''

Part of a statement by Republican Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger who in the past has mostly opposed legal recognition of gay marriage. (Politico)