PROVIDENCE -- Chris Butler and R.J. Rose dated for eight years before tying the knot on April 3. They had a small family wedding at Capron Park in Attleboro. As is the case with many young couples, they are now renting and searching for an affordable house. Butler and Rose live in Pawtucket, but couldn’t wed in Rhode Island, because the state bans same-sex couples from legal marriage. That is why their nuptials were held in Massachusetts, the only state in the nation where gay marriage is legally recognized. The couple is one of about 200 same-sex couples living in Rhode Island who crossed the state line to legally marry in Massachusetts, said Jenn Steinfeld, director of Marriage Equality Rhode Island. Today marks the one-year anniversary of a Massachusetts Superior Court judge’s ruling that same-sex couples who live in Rhode Island can legally marry in the Bay State. Rhode Island’s gay-rights activists are using the occasion to kick off a renewed campaign in the 2008 General Assembly session for legalizing same-sex marriage in Rhode Island. Butler and Steinfeld note that many gay couples have adopted children and live conventional lifestyles, except for their sexual orientation. "We go to church on Sunday mornings and eat at Gregg's," said Butler, adding that they attend St. Stephens, an Episcopal Church near Brown University in Providence. In Rhode Island, same-sex marriage legislation is likely to be sponsored by Rep. Arthur Handy, D-Cranston. Handy said yesterday he would submit a bill with the same language as last year, when the measure remained bottled up in committee. The political calculus portends an uphill fight for any legislation that would have Rhode Island join Massachusetts in recognizing gay marriage, Handy acknowledged. Top Rhode Island political leaders, including Governor Carcieri, a Republican, and the two leading Assembly Democrats, Senate President Joseph Montalbano and House Speaker William Murphy, D-West Warwick, are opposed to legalizing gay marriage.