WASHINGTON — Supporters and opponents of same-sex marriage faced off Tuesday on the plaza in front of the Supreme Court as the justices gathered inside to hear a landmark case on the subject.

On the same plaza on Saturday, Jonas Minino faced off against his father.

Minino's father is a pastor in Northern Virginia, and his sister is married to a pastor, and they oppose same-sex marriage as sin. Minino, who lives in Washington, is gay, which has long been a point of contention for the family.

"They believe I can change, that I have some kind of psychological disorder, that with therapy I can change myself," Minino said Tuesday as he returned to the plaza. "I believe I should be able to marry the person I love."

His father and sister came to the court Saturday with buses full of congregants from their church.

Minino, 32, came to the court to stand in favor of gay marriage.

He didn't see his family that day, but they saw him. Afterward his father sent him a text telling him he would go to hell unless he repented, which Minino shared with USA TODAY (translated from Spanish):

Dad: "I saw you there (at the rally) on the side of the children of darkness. Christ is coming soon. Please don't be lost. The fires of Hell are real."

Minino: "forget I exist. I'm going to leave you with this photo." (The photo is of Minino with friends in front of the Supreme Court holding up a gay pride flag).

Marino said he kept the texts because "he's my father and I love him."

But he said his father has made comments his entire life about how he can change his homosexuality.

"I'm done," he said. "I'm done with the hate. I'm done with the comments. Why do I have to go to hell because I'm gay?

"Now I will have to find a new family."