Southern Baptists are partnering with other evangelical organizations in sponsoring Marriage Protection Week Oct. 12-18. The Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC), Focus on the Family, the Religious Freedom Coalition, Christian Coalition, Prison Fellowship and about two dozen other groups are planning the week that is “dedicated to preserving the sacred institution of marriage.”
Marriage Protection Week is an effort by these groups to aid churches in their response to recent attempts to redefine marriage, said ERLC’s Richard Land. Information on the event is available at www.marriageprotectionweek.com.
The Web site offers many downloadable resources such as a sample poster, scriptural commentary on marriage and an outline from a sermon delivered by Ronnie Floyd, pastor of First Baptist Church, Springdale, Ark.
In addition, anyone interested in taking action against the legalization of same-sex marriage can find information on how to encourage state representatives to adopt a proclamation endorsing Marriage Protection Week.
The sample proclamation calls marriage the “cornerstone and foundation of society” and names the family “an essential part of American culture.” It goes on to say, “In recent times, the venerated institution of marriage between one man and one woman has come under assault. The prevalence of divorce, cohabitation and the attacks upon traditional marriage threaten the very core of our society.”
Church resources
For churches, there are bulletin inserts with action steps to get the Federal Marriage Amendment approved by Congress and out to state Legislatures.
A petition that will go to Congress and the president is also available to sign on the Web site.
According to supporters of Marriage Protection Week, the legalization of same-sex marriage in one state would lead to a rash of lawsuits from homosexual couples in every other state. Opposers to same-sex marriage seek to quell the movement through a constitutional amendment.
“The best legal minds … have come to the conclusion that the only way we can protect ourselves from having the judiciary force same-sex marriage upon an unwilling nation is to have a constitutional amendment that says specifically that nothing in the U.S. Constitution or any of the state constitutions shall be constructed as requiring that marriage be anything other than the union of a man and a woman,” Land said.
(TAB, BP)
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