BOSTON -- The U.S. Supreme Court refused Friday to block the nation's first state-sanctioned gay marriages from taking place next week, in Massachusetts.

The justices declined without comment to intervene and block clerks from issuing marriage licenses to gay couples in the state, whose highest court had ruled in November that the state Constitution allows gay couples to marry, and declared that the process would begin on Monday.

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Conservative groups appealed Friday's ruling from the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The court refused to overturn a lower judge's order that allowed gay marriages in the state go forward, beginning Monday.

The Florida-based Liberty Counsel had asked the Supreme Court whether the Massachusetts judges had wrongly redefined marriage. The conservative group said that task should be handled by elected legislators.

Even though it denied the injunction, the federal appeals court Friday did agree to hear arguments in the case, but not until June. By then, several weeks of legal gay marriages will have taken place.

The leader of the conservative group Liberty's Counsel called Friday's action "a bump in the road."

A federal judge Thursday refused to grant an injunction stopping the marriages. The judge said the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court acted within its authority to interpret the term "marriage" in the state's constitution and order the issuing of marriage licenses to gay couples, starting Monday.

The foes of gay marriages say the highest state court in Massachusetts overstepped its bounds when it ruled that the marriages were legal.

Massachusetts Prepares

Meanwhile, same-sex couples are getting ready to ring wedding bells Monday.

For centuries, the Arlington Street Church in Boston has been the center of the abolitionist movement, the women's suffrage movement and for the last 40 years, the gay rights movement. Robert Compton and David Wilson will be the first to be married at the church under the new law Monday.

"This really represents the latest chapter in the history of the civil rights movement in America and the history of the civil rights movements in this particular congregation starting with the anti-slavery movement here in this congregation, moving right up to some of the antiwar movements," said Jeff Quinlan of the Arlington Street Church.

But the biggest day comes later in the week, when couples that did not seek a waiver of the three-day waiting period for all marriage license holders walk down the aisle. In all, 37 couples will do so.

"Thursday is the big day," said Jeff Bouchard of the Arlington Street Church. "Every 20 minutes there will a couple coming up, they will be meeting with the clergy, they will speak with them, sign their license, walk out with a picture of themselves and a rose."

Across the city, caterers, florists and wedding planners are hoping for a boost in business this spring. At the Copley Marriott, Michael Horgan and Ed Balmelli will marry Monday night, followed by a casual celebration that won't include some of the traditions of other weddings.

"You certainly won't find some of the things you would normally find, even a champagne toast, no cake, and the ceremony will be very simple and straight forward, very quick," said Kurt Brown of the Boston Marriott Copley.

Many same-sex couples marrying next week have lived together for years, even decades, but they are realistic and know that not everyone who shows up on Monday will be celebrating their unions.

"In any situation of this magnitude, something like that is always there. Yes, it does concern us, but we are prepared for anything of that event and this is life. We expect it to be that way," Bouchard said.

Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney called on protesters to be respectful and hospitable to those getting married on Monday. The state's most prominent opponent of gay marriages, Romney said he might attend same-sex wedding ceremonies in the future. But he declined the first invitation from radio personality Darrell Martini, known as the Cosmic Muffin. Romney said he had a scheduling conflict.