And While We Wait...

It seems that the West Virginia State Legislature is in no hurry to make a statement against homosexual marriage. Keep in mind that no one is asking them to make a bold statement. No one is even asking them to make a stand one way or the other. The only thing they are being asked to do is recognize the will of the people by allowing them to vote on whether our state should ammend our consititution to affirm the traditional definition of marriage as between one man and one woman. Instead, they will continue to drag their feet until the point is made moot by the actions of surrounding states.

WV MetroNews reported the following on Tuesday:

There's little indication that state lawmakers are willing to move on a proposed Constitutional Amendment that, if approved by voters, would define marriage in West Virginia as a union between one man and one woman.

That proposed Amendment was the focus of a more than two hour hearing in front of a legislative committee Tuesday at the State Capitol. Lawmakers are holding monthly meetings there.

Alliance Defense Fund Senior Counsel Jordan Lorence was among those who testified. He says the legalization of same sex marriages in other states shows that a Constitutional Amendment is needed here.

"There's been nine states that have had their courts strike down their marriage laws and, basically, impose a same sex marriage on the entire state so the only way, really, to prevent that is with state Constitutional Amendments which 30 states have done already," Lorence says.

But Seth DiStefano, Field Organizer with West Virginia's American Civil Liberties Union, calls the proposed Constitutional Amendment "redundant." The Defense of Marriage Act is already part of state law, he says, defining marriage as between a man and a woman.

"I think it's very unnecessary," DiStefano says. "I think it sends a very dangerous message that West Virginians aren't inclusive people and I think that, ultimately, the rights of minorities should not be a function of popular opinion, which is what this bill sets out to do."

DiStefano says defining marriage is not one of the most pressing issues in West Virginia right now.

"I thought that the lawmakers were generally receptive to both sides. Everyone got their say," he said when asked about Tuesday's hearing. "But I don't know if the Legislature feels that this is the pressing issue that the proponents try to make it out to be."

Lorence, though, says those who think the Defense of Marriage Act is enough are
wrong. "What is unimaginable today, ten or 15 or 20 years in the future might become imaginable."

A bill that would put such a Constitutional Amendment on the ballot in West Virginia will likely be introduced again during next year's legislative session.

Meanwhile, in the courts of another neighboring state, DOMA laws are being overturned. It may be a more pressing issue than any of us realize.

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Out of the Closet

Alan Sears, head of the Alliance Defense Fund, discusses the changes to the White House website. At least there is no mystery as to what the administration's agenda is.


If America suddenly changed overnight, would anyone notice? Would anyone care?

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The State of Marriage

This morning, I saw this video advertisement posted on the Drudge Report. While true societal change only comes as a result of a work of the Spirit of God in the lives of people, we as individual Christian citizens are called to exercise our civic duty in a Christ-like manner. One of the ways we can do that is to support laws that will restrain evil and point people to Scriptural truth.

The law does not promote righteousness, but rather is a schoolmaster that restrains evil and shows us how far we fall short of God’s righteousness. To mix metaphors, the law is a signpost that points people to their need for a Savior. Back in January, I posted an article titled The Law, Marriage and Morality that deals with this very subject. With that biblical view of the relationship between the church and law in mind, consider this video and the level of political involvement it requests.



From the website:

Same-sex "marriage" is a closer reality in West Virginia than you may think. Opponents of marriage are working on a chaotic strategy that lets five judges in Charleston decide the definition of marriage, rather than the people of West Virginia.

But, the people of West Virginia want to define marriage for themselves. And they should! Here are 4 things you can do to stand for marriage in West Virginia:

1. Pray for strong, stable marriages in the Mountain State.
2. Call your legislator (1-877-565-3447) today and ask them to allow you to vote on the constitutional definition of marriage.
3. Email your friends an invitation to wv4marriage.com.
4. Give to the ongoing efforts to stand for marriage in West Virginia.

Also:

Marriage is among the most unifying of issues for West Virginians. More than 90% of West Virginians believe voters should settle the definition of marriage, not judges. But some legislators have labeled such attempts at self-governance, "a disservice to the public."

Public policy should be decided by the public. Yet, unless the West Virginia legislature lets the voters of this state vote, marriage could be redefined without a single West Virginia voter casting a vote.

Jeremy Dys and the rest of the West Virginia Family Policy Council are doing a fantastic job of raising awareness and generating support for a marriage amendment to the state constitution. Click the WV4Marriage.com button in the sidebar for more information about what they are doing or how you can support their efforts.

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Posts of Our Many Understandings

Yesterday, while driving back from a Pastor’s Summit on Marriage hosted by the West Virginia Family Policy Council, I was listening to an interview with Bishop Gene Robinson on NPR. Robinson is the Episcopal Bishop of New Hampshire and is an openly practicing homosexual. The occasion of the interview was the recent announcement of his role in the upcoming Presidential Inauguration. Whereas well-known evangelical pastor Rick Warren will deliver the invocation at the inaugural ceremony itself, Robinson will pray to open the huge pre-ceremony kick-off rally from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.

Preparing to write a tremendously insightful essay (said while oozing humility) on Bishop Robinson’s intent to pray to the “god of our many understandings” in lieu of invoking the name of Jesus, I woke up this morning only to find that Dr. Al Mohler had beaten me to the punch. So rather than run the risk of overpowering his essay with my insight (once again oozing humility), I’ll just refer you to his.

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Civil Rights or Wrongs?

What a mess…. Homosexual activists are drawing the comparison between their “movement” and the civil rights struggles of the ‘50s. The catchphrase that is being marketed to capture the comparison is, “Gay Is the New Black.” When I hear statements like that, I shake my head and wonder, “Are they serious?”

Apparently they are. Equating homosexuality and perversion to ethnicity is an attempt to justify their lifestyle choice and create an appearance of legitimacy. But that is not the extent of their self-justification. Homosexual activists are also attempting to justify themselves religiously. The cover of this week’s Newsweek magazine synopsizes this latest attempt. As shoppers stand in line at the grocery store this week, they will be confronted with the headline, “The Religious Case for Gay Marriage.” As you open the magazine to the cover story, you will find the article’s subtitle: “Opponents of gay marriage often cite Scripture. But what the Bible teaches about love argues for the other side.”

Oh really? That’s another statement that makes me question their seriousness. But sadly they are. And the disturbing fact is that many churchgoers will not know how to refute their claims because they use their Bibles as infrequently and improperly as the reporter does.

The Bible is clear in its teaching on the design, purpose and nature of marriage. It originated in creation as a union between one man and one woman for the purpose of unique relational intimacy and propagation. The propagation was two-fold—first the propagation of the species and second, the propagation of the testimony of who God is and His work in the world. The clarifying revelation of the New Testament brings the picture into an even sharper focus. God designed marriage as a picture of the relationship between His Son and the church. God’s design, purpose and nature of marriage can never be accomplished in a union between anything other than one man and one woman. While the polygamy of the patriarchs tainted the picture and purposes of marriage, homosexual unions utterly destroy it.

But here is the real problem. The problem isn’t that homosexual activists will twist Scripture in an attempt to justify themselves. The problem isn’t that we don’t have enough laws to regulate against their lifestyle (even though we should). The problem is not a “they” problem. The problem is a “we” problem.

We as a nation have forgotten God. As Romans 1:21 says that we know God but we do not honor Him as God or give Him thanks for who He is and what He’s done. The rampant immorality and violence we see in our nation today is a result of that. Homosexuality is not the cause of big problems—it’s the result of the biggest problem we have.

But we as a nation are not even the biggest problem—because we as a nation can do nothing to fix it. We as the church are the biggest problem because we are the only ones with the solution. When we see the abomination of homosexuality, what is our reaction? All too often, we want to get in the fight. We want to make signs and petitions and go toe-to-toe with the activists. We want to rail against articles like the one in Newsweek and decry the awfulness of the sin we see “out there”. But those things will do nothing to fix the problem. The only thing that will fix the problem is the life-changing, world-changing Gospel of Jesus Christ—and we’re the only ones who can deliver it.

It looks like we’ve gotten behind. I guess that means we’d better get busy.

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