In
the politics
of debate,
and in various Court rulings and State Legislatures, same-sex marriage has been
advanced:
- Apart from the historical nature of
unalienable
and constitutional rights;
- Often
in direct
threat to
the
religious,
political
and
economic
liberty of
dissenters,
and;
-
Without
making the
case for
defining
homosexuality
as an
objective
civil
rights
class.
These
three realities
ultimately
undermine a
civil
society for
all people.
Rooted in
the initial
Ministers
Affirmation
on Marriage
published in
the Hartford
Courant in
2003 and
2005, this
Affirmation
has been
presented
many times
to the most
qualified
and
committed
advocates of
same-sex
marriage,
and
continues to
seek their
input.
Now, in
preparation
for a likely
U.S. Supreme
Court case,
this
Affirmation
is set to be
presented as
an amicus
("friend of
the court"
legal
brief), with
full
annotation,
and seeking
as many
signatories
as possible.
- To be
a
signatory,
in
agreeing
to this
Affirmation,
email
tei@teii.org
with your
full
contact
information,
and
position
in
ministry
or
teaching.
And
please, do
whatever
study is
necessary
to
understand
what is
both a
simple,
yet
biblically
and
constitutionally
literate
affirmation. All clergy
recognized
by their
local
churches
and/or
larger
denominations,
and other
recognized
leaders
such as
elders,
deacons,
pastoral
staff,
Sunday
School and
Bible
Study
leaders,
Christian
school or
university
educators,
missionaries,
leaders in
Christian
organizations, Christians
who are
educators
in secular
settings,
et al.,
qualify.
In other
words,
Christian
leaders
who are
actively
involved
in shaping
the church
and its
pedagogy
in the
face of
the wider
culture.
____________________________
An
Affirmation
by Ministers
of the
Gospel and
Christian
Leaders:
Yes to Man and Woman in Marriage
No to Same-Sex Marriage
First, we affirm that the unalienable rights of life, liberty and property, and hence the power to pursue happiness, are given by the Creator to all people equally, as individual people, regardless of religion, sexual identity or other criteria. This affirmation is rooted uniquely in the assumptions
and
trajectory of Genesis 1-2, and reflected in the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution.
We also
affirm
that the
Creator
defines
human
sexuality
in the
context
of the
marriage
of one
man and
one woman
in mutual
fidelity.
Here, the
equality
and
complementary
of male
and
female
serves
diversity
in
service
to unity,
uniquely
providing
the
necessary
social
adhesive
of trust,
which is
then
modeled
for our
children.
In human
history,
no
society
rooted in
the
approval
of
homosexuality,
in any
capacity,
has ever
produced
unalienable
rights
for the
larger
social
order.
Nonetheless, same-sex marriage has been advanced, without historical precedent, as a
de facto unalienable right
("basic"
or
"fundamental"). Therefore, we believe same-sex marriage advocates need to answer four questions:
- Are unalienable rights being redefined?
- If so, why?
- If so, what is the new basis for these rights?
- If
so, what are the consequences? For example, would the “right” to same-sex marriage thus prevail over the religious, political and economic liberty to dissent from it?
And,
can a
descent
into
"might
make
right"
thus be
averted?
Second, “sexual orientation” is changeable,
even if
deeply
present in
one's
psyche, and there is no scientific basis for a supposed genetic or social determinism to homosexuality. Therefore, we believe same-sex marriage advocates need to answer two further questions:
- What is the evidence that homosexuality is a fixed and “immutable trait,” and thus equal to an
objective class of people for
separate civil rights purposes?
- What prevents any other group of people from claiming a subjective identity as a civil rights class?
Unless these six questions are answered with clarity and substance, then same-sex marriage advocates
have not
sustained
their
position.
And finally, we affirm these words of Jesus: “Come to me, all you who are weary, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28).
For those who struggle with homosexual temptation, or any other temptation, Jesus invites us to come to him, and on his terms. We too, as ministers of the Gospel, and leaders in the church, have the exact same need, daily, to seek God’s grace to overcome any range of temptations that may come our way – as is common with all people.
Jesus
affirms
marriage
as
defined
in the
biblical
order of
creation,
he
fulfilled
the Law
of Moses
that says
no to
homosexual
actions, and
the
apostle
Paul
ratifies
the same.
Therefore,
those who
wish to
be
reconciled
with the
biblical
understanding
of Jesus
are
invited
to affirm
marriage
as one
man and
one
woman,
and to
eschew all other definitions of human sexuality.
All people are created as image-bearers of God, seeking peace, order, stability
and hope; to live, to love, to laugh and to learn. The question is whether we seek these qualities on our Creator’s own terms, or on our own broken terms.
And we
are all
broken,
in one
way or
another,
apart
from the
healing
power of
the
Gospel.
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