The US Senate and the Definition of Marriage

by Dave Miller, Ph.D.

What do you consider to be the most pressing social/political concerns in America? The Iraq War? High gasoline prices? Illegal immigration? Tax increases? Rising health-care costs? The environment? While these issues merit some legitimate concern, the fact is, if Jesus Christ were to return today to terminate human history and usher in eternity, such issues would hold little significance.

The Bible teaches that one must be spiritually-minded, transcending mere physical, earthly concerns to view life spiritually (Romans 8:6). Sometimes we become so entwined in daily living that we “can’t see the forest for the trees.” Jesus rebuked the Pharisees for failing to “discern the signs of the times” (Matthew 16:3).

Both history and eternity will surely verify that the two premiere issues confronting American civilization at this moment in time are same-sex marriage and the murder of innocent unborn children. Biblical precedent exists for recognizing that on the basis of these two issues alone, the God of the Universe will inevitably unleash His fury on the nation (e.g., Genesis 19; Deuteronomy 18:9-12; 2 Kings 17:17-18). The survival of America unquestionably teeters on these two critical cultural issues.

If that be the case, Americans ought to be ashamed, alarmed, and outraged that not even half of the senators of these 50 United States were willing to vote in favor of a constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage (“U.S. Senate...,” 2006). That means that they do not want to allow the American people to decide whether to amend the federal Constitution to define marriage. Never mind the fact that 45 states have already approved either state constitutional amendments or statutes to define traditional marriage in a way that would bar same-sex marriage (Kellman, 2006; Murray, 2006). Never mind the fact that 20 states have already passed state constitution amendments by overwhelming majorities (Weber, 2006). The unmitigated gall and defiant audacity of activist judges are seen in the fact that they have already struck down voter-approved marriage amendments in both Nebraska and Georgia (Peterson, 2006; Lochhead, 2006).

The Founders of the American republic would never have even entertained a discussion challenging the biblical definition of marriage. They knew and believed that the family was designed and created by God to be the fundamental building block of society (Genesis 1:27; 2:24). They surely could never have imagined that half of the United States Senate would one day fail to stand firmly and forthrightly on what constitutes a marriage.

REFERENCES

Kellman, Laurie (2006), “Senate Rejects Amendment on Gay Marriage,” Associated Press, June 7, [On-line], URL: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060607/ap_on_go_co/gay_marriage

Murray, Shailagh (2006), “Gay Marriage Amendment Fails in Senate,” Washington Post, June 8, [On-line], URL: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/06/07/AR20060 60700830.html.

Lochhead, Carolyn (2006), “Senate Marriage Ban Amendment Rejected,” San Francisco Chronicle, June 8, [On-line], URL: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/06/08/MARRIAGE.TMP

Peterson, Kavan (2006), “Washington Gay Marriage Ruling Looms,” Stateline.org, March 29, [On-line], URL: http://www.stateline.org/live/ViewPage.action?siteNodeId=136&languageId=1& contentId=20695.

“U.S. Senate Roll Call Votes 109th Congress—2nd Session” (2006), United States Senate, [On-line], URL: http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm? congress=109&session=2&vote=00163.

Weber, Walter (2006), “No Excuses,” National Review Online, June 2, [On-line], URL: http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=N2YxNzMzN2RiNDNhNjAyZWYzODNkNjYwYmQ1M GIwMTc=.

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