No relief was forthcoming from my then-Catholic faith, which said the practice of homosexuality was a 'mortal sin' subject to damnation.

But being in the closet uniquely assisted me in politics. From my first run for the state legislature until my election as governor, all too often I was not leading but following my best guess at public opinion.

Civil union is less than marriage. Marriage is a sacred and valued institution and ought to be afforded equal protection.

I'm enjoying prison ministry, particularly with the women in Hudson County Jail who have suffered tremendously in their lives.

I'm on the board of a national group called Faith in America. It's designed to fight religious-based bigotry.

More than anything else I recall being, or trying very deliberately to be, a perfect child. Not a Goody Two-shoes, but a kid who did good, who worked hard and met every expectation. I strove to achieve in the excessive way that psychotherapists tend to regard with concern.

I try to be grateful for the abundance of the blessings that I have, for the journey that I'm on and to relish each day as a gift.