With Marriage Redefined, Will Pastors Be Forced to Wed Gays?
The United States Supreme Court handed down its long-awaited same-sex marriage ruling today, opting to redefine marriage in America—a 180-degree turn away from the biblical intent for marriage—as the Court also pushed aside states’ rights and voters’ voices.
Dr. Richard Land, president of Southern Evangelical Seminary, a leader in apologetics education, said the decision throws away God’s meaning for marriage.
“Now,” Land said, “the battlefield shifts to religious freedom. Will the progressive, totalitarian and intolerant left weaponize the government and attempt to force or compel people to affirm same-sex behavior and relationships? Or will they respect the freedom of conscience guaranteed by the Constitution? These will continue to be questions for the coming generations, now that the high Court has seized the historic role of defining marriage from the individual states and stripped it away from voters.”
FOX News recently reported that the nearly 16 million members of the Southern Baptist Convention by an overwhelming vote of their convention were encouraged to “openly reject any mandated legal definition of marriage and to use their influence to affirm God’s design for life and relationships.” Land, president emeritus of The Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, the Southern Baptist Convention’s official entity assigned to address social, moral and ethical concerns, with particular attention to their impact on American families, served as president of that organization from 1988-2013.
