Marriage – Page 17 – Family Council

Why Churches Should Not Get Out of the “Marriage Business”

Nov 26, 2014JerryMarriageMarriage, Same-Sex Marriage

As judges continue to redefine marriage in spite of millenia of human history, religious tradition, and overwhelming majorities of voters, many Christians have called for churches and ministers to get out of the “marriage business” altogether.

The idea is as the legal definition of marriage has changed, ministers may be compromising their convictions by signing state-issued marriage licenses for Christian couples.

John Stonestreet at the Chuck Colson Center for Christian Worldview has authored an excellent commentary on why ministers should not get out of the “marriage business”–at least not yet.

Stonestreet writes,

“First of all, there’s nothing on a state marriage license that requires clergy to say that marriage is something that it is not. But by refusing to sign any marriage licenses, we’re missing an opportunity to proclaim to the state and to the public what marriage truly is.

“Second, by backing out of the civil marriage business, we risk perpetuating that illusion that marriage is something the government defines instead of something it recognizes, and we perpetuate the myth that the Christian view of marriage is only for us Christians. In fact, marriage existed before the church and before the state. It’s the job of both institutions to recognize it.

“And here’s a question that bothers me. If clergy should not participate in civil marriage, why should laity? If it’s wrong for pastors, isn’t it wrong for parishioners?”

You can read Stonestreet’s full commentary here or listen to it below.

[audio:http://bit.ly/1ATLii9|titles=John Stonestreet – Separating Civil and Christian Marriage]

Family Council Calls Marriage Ruling “Judicial Tyranny”

Nov 26, 2014JerryMarriage, NewsMarriage, Same-Sex Marriage

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, November 25, 2014

On Tuesday U.S. District Judge Kristine Baker struck down Amendment 83 to the Arkansas Constitution defining marriage in Arkansas as the union of one man and one woman.

Family Council President Jerry Cox released a statement in response to the ruling, saying, “This is another example of judicial tyranny. Arkansans voted overwhelmingly to define marriage as the union of one man and one woman. Their elected officials voted for that definition when they passed Arkansas’ Defense of Marriage Act. By issuing this ruling, one federal judge is saying seventy-five percent of Arkansas voters and lawmakers do not matter. If that isn’t tyranny, I don’t know what is.”

Cox said the ruling sets a troubling precedent. “What Judge Baker effectively did was erase Arkansas’ definition of marriage. It opens the door for marriage to become anything. We have already seen polygamists in Utah and elsewhere try to ride the coat tails of same-sex marriage activists in court. Rulings like this one only fuel those efforts.”

Cox said this case is almost certain to land before the U.S. Supreme Court. “This fight is far from over. Judge Baker has put a stay on her ruling until the Eighth Circuit, which includes Arkansas, issues a ruling. The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals recently ruled that marriage amendments like Arkansas’ are constitutional. Any time you have federal judges disagreeing about what is constitutional, the case is almost guaranteed to go to the U.S. Supreme Court. I hope the higher courts exercise enough restraint to respect the wishes of voters. If Americans are not free to decide how they will define something as basic as marriage, then what are they free to decide?”

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News Release: Citizens to Rally for Traditional Marriage

Nov 19, 2014JerryMarriageMarriage, Same-Sex Marriage

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, November 19, 2014

Little Rock, Ark. – On Wednesday, November 19, at 11:00 AM Arkansans will gather on the steps of the Arkansas Capitol Building in Little Rock to rally in support of traditional marriage. The rally comes on the eve of oral arguments at the Arkansas Supreme Court concerning the fate of the state’s Defense of Marriage Act and the 2004 Arkansas Marriage Amendment defining marriage as the union of one man and one woman.

Speakers at the rally will include Josh Duggar of Family Research Council Action; Jerry Cox of Family Council; State Senator Bart Hester; State Representative Bob Ballinger; Pastor Happy Caldwell of Victory Television Network; and Pastor Derick Easter of New St. Hurricane Missionary Baptist Church in Pine Bluff.

In May Pulaski County Circuit Judge Chris Piazza struck down the state’s marriage laws. Family Council President Jerry Cox released a statement ahead of the rally, saying, “We are gathering to ask the Arkansas Supreme Court to honor our vote. Arkansans voted overwhelmingly to define marriage as the union of one man and one woman. The question before the court is who gets to make the laws in Arkansas: The voters or one judge in Little Rock?”

Cox said he believes Americans are tired of judges overriding voters. “Our government is supposed to be of the people by the people for the people. That applies to every branch of government, including the judicial branch. A few folks have begun calling for a new law allowing voters to recall a judge in the middle of a term if they don’t like how that judge has ruled. If the Arkansas Supreme Court chooses to ignore all the voters who believe marriage ought to be between a man and a woman, I would expect those calls for judicial reform to intensify.”

Cox said he hopes the Arkansas Supreme Court will respect the will of the people by upholding the state’s marriage laws. “Nearly one in ten voters signed the petition to put the Arkansas Marriage Amendment on the ballot in 2004. Seventy-five percent of voters voted for it. Ten years later, most Arkansans still believe marriage ought to be between one man and one woman. I hope the state Supreme Court respects voters enough to uphold the amendment Arkansans worked so hard to pass.”

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