At least this is a step in the right direction, I suppose.

The Supreme Court on Monday sidestepped a dispute over gay marriages, rejecting a challenge to the nation's only law sanctioning such unions.

Justices had been asked by conservative groups to overturn the year-old decision by the Massachusetts Supreme Court legalizing gay marriage. They declined, without comment.

In the past year, at least 3,000 gay Massachusetts couples have wed, although voters may have a chance next year to change the state constitution to permit civil union benefits to same-sex couples, but not the institution of marriage.

Critics of the November 2003 ruling by the highest court in Massachusetts argue that it violated the U.S. Constitution's guarantee of a republican form of government in each state. They lost at the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston.

Link.

My assumption is that the conservatives realize they don't have the votes to overturn the measure with Rehnquist out indefinitely (a 4-4 tie would uphold the lower court's decision without making precedent), so they chose instead to sidestep the issue. Regardless, it is good to see the Court staying out of this issue.