Circuit Judge Stephen Reinhardt, one of the country’s most liberal judges, wrote for the three-judge panel in soaring language.

“The lessons of our constitutional history are clear: inclusion strengthens, rather than weakens, our most important institutions,” he wrote, referring to famous court decisions requiring racial integration, adding women to juries and allowing gays to serve in the military.

“When same-sex couples are married, just as when opposite-sex couples are married, they serve as models of loving commitment to all.”