Supreme Court's Marriage Ruling is Shocking Abuse of Power, Will Never Be Accepted

June 26, 2015

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Family Research Council (FRC) President Tony Perkins responded today to the U.S. Supreme Court's decision forcing the people in all 50 states to embrace same-sex "marriage," regardless of their votes to define marriage in their states as a man-woman institution.

Of the decision FRC President Tony Perkins said:

"Five justices on the Supreme Court have overturned the votes of 50 million Americans and demanded that the American people walk away from millennia of history and the reality of human nature.

"In reaching a decision so lacking in foundation in the text of the Constitution, in our history, and in our traditions, the Court has done serious damage to its own legitimacy.

"No court can overturn natural law. Nature and Nature's God, hailed by the signers of our Declaration of Independence as the very source of law, cannot be usurped by the edict of a court, even the United States Supreme Court.

"Marriage is rooted not only in human history, but also in the biological and social reality that children are created by, and do best when raised by, a mother and a father. No court ruling can alter this truth.

"It is folly for the Court to think that it has resolved a controversial issue of public policy. By disenfranchising 50 million Americans, the Court has instead supercharged this issue.

"Just as with Roe v. Wade in 1973, the courts will not have the final say on this profound social matter. The American people will stand up for their right to have a voice and a vote, especially as they experience the ways in which redefining marriage fundamentally impairs their freedom to live and work in accordance with their beliefs.

"With this ruling, the Supreme Court has set our government on a collision course with America's cherished religious freedoms, explicitly guaranteed in the First Amendment of the Constitution.

"Americans will not stop standing for transcendent truth, nor accept the legitimacy of this decision. Truth is not decided by polls or the passage of time, but by the One who created time and everything that exists therein.

"We will not lapse into silence but will continue to speak uncompromisingly for the truth about what marriage is, always has been, and always will be: the union of one man and one woman," concluded Perkins.

Family Research Council's amicus brief in this case can be found here: http://www.frc.org/get.cfm?i=LK15F126

Congressman Randy Forbes Statement on Supreme Court Marriage Ruling

Washington, D.C. – Today, the Supreme Court issued a 5 to 4 decision, authored by Justice Kennedy, holding that the Due Process and Establishment Clauses of the 14th Amendment  of the Constitution require all 50 states to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples.  This ruling overturns democratically-elected laws in dozens of states. In response to the Court's decision, Congressman J. Randy Forbes (VA04), issued the following statement:

"It is not the Court's job to redefine sound public policy that has been democratically enacted by millions of Americans – just as the government should never force people to choose between their faith and their livelihood. Every American should be free to affirm the truth about marriage without being punished by the government."

The majority opinion acknowledged that traditional marriage is a view that, "has long been held—and continues to be held—in good faith by reasonable and sincere people here and throughout the world…The First Amendment ensures that religious organizations and persons are given proper protection as they seek to teach the principles that are so fulfilling and so central to their lives and faiths, and to their own deep aspirations to continue the family structure they have long revered.

However, the dissenting Justices took issue with what they saw as a weak and narrow understating of the First Amendment. Justice Thomas stated, "[The majority] makes only a weak gesture toward religious liberty in a single paragraph. And even that gesture indicates a misunderstanding of religious liberty in our Nation's tradition. Religious liberty is about more than just the protection for "religious organizations and persons… as they seek to teach the principles that are so fulfilling and so central to their lives and faiths." Religious liberty is about the freedom of action in matters of religion generally, and the scope of that liberty is directly correlates to the civil restraints places upon religious practice."

Chief Justice Roberts further highlighted the Court's improper imposition into the democratic process. "[T]his Court is not a legislature. Whether same-sex marriage is a good idea should be of no concern to us… The majority's decision is an act of will, not legal judgment."  

TVC Statement on Federal Gay Marriage Mandate

June 26th, 2015

WASHINGTON, DC - Statement of Traditional Values Coalition (TVC) president Andrea Lafferty in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court 5-4 ruling on Obergefell et al. v. Hodges:

"In effect, the U.S. Supreme Court is arguing that while one can advocate for traditional marriage, one cannot operate according to those beliefs.
 
"This ruling sets up a rather dangerous collision course between the First Amendment religious freedom and the rights of conscience vs. the newly-established "right to dignity" embedded in Obergefell v. Hodges.
 
"America's Judeo-Christian tradition ensured for over 230 years that we would remain a pluralistic society, one of differing views and traditions that respected the basic rule of law.  Today's ruling fundamentally undermines that understanding of American traditions.

"The U.S. Supreme Court over the last two days has fundamentally altered its condition as an arbiter of law.  Instead of judging on the basis of law, the Supreme Court has now arrogated its powers to become a venue of last resort, or rather a place where laws passed by the legislature and duly signed by the executive are now radically altered and changed to fit the opinions of what the elites believe such laws should be.
 
"TVC is thankful for the dissenting opinion.  We can only join our voice to theirs, and continue to speak on behalf of a Christian community that is quickly finding itself apart and separated from the secular mainstream -- in the world, but certainly not of it (John 17, 1 Peter 2:11-12)."

Traditional Values Coalition is an interdenominational and multi-racial public policy organization speaking on behalf of 43,000 churches nationwide.

Court of Deception

BY DELEGATE BOB MARSHALL
 

 "… the fact that the Court rules … that a given program is constitutional, does not necessarily answer the question whether, in a broader sense, it actually is." *
 
Those words came from then Chief Justice, Earl Warren, who, in 1962 had a more modest view of his own infallibility than the current set of lawyers on the Supreme Court, a majority who deceive themselves into believing they can alter the foundational relationship of human existence. 
 
The Court has issued a farce appropriate for theatrical comedy, not a reasoned decision on marriage or the U.S. Constitution.   In the majority's gushing decision, judicial will purports to nullify real marriage.  The same arguments the Court used today for "same sex marriage" also justifies "marriages" between three or more people.
 
Basing their decision on the 14^th Amendment, despite the fact that state legislatures which ratified this amendment also had felony sodomy laws on the books, the Justices are strangely silent on describing the disordered sexual behavior underlying homosexual "marriages," which lead to early death and numerous medical pathologies, or the fact that such behaviors were universally considered criminal acts until a few short years ago.  
 
Today's Supreme Court ruling means that persons like Mother Teresa or Rev. Rick Warren who gave the invocation at Barack Obama's First Inaugural are now "haters" and "bigots," and will be marginalized or even excluded from the public life of this nation by future decisions and applications of this decision.
 
Several states already no longer allow religious based adoption agencies to place children for adoption unless they place children with same sex "married" couples.  Individual business owners who refuse to participate in same sex "marriage" services have been given six figure fines.
 
Because the Court based its decision on the 14th Amendment, churches, religious schools and institutions will likely lose their tax exemption if they fail to affirm "marriages" between same sex couples.  Students will no longer be eligible for state scholarships if used at colleges which affirm traditional moral teaching.  Public schools will become indoctrination centers for acceptance of homosexual behavior.  
 
This is a most unwise decision attempting to coerce citizens to choose between their country and their faith or conscience, and make them enemies of the state for following the Laws of Nature and Nature's God.  Because of an erring Supreme Court many professionals will be placed in an untenable position of choosing between losing their ability to provide for their families and following their conscience. It is not heartless conservatives who would prevent same sex "marriage," it is Nature itself.
 
Congress must use its undisputed power of the purse to ban the spending of any federal monies by federal courts or agencies to implement this mockery.  Since only four decisions of the Supreme Court have been overturned by Constitutional Amendment since 1789, a constitutional amendment may be a blind alley, not an immediate practical response to this moral and constitutional crisis.   
 
The decision does not define marriage.  When the Supreme Court next rules on threesome "marriages" will same sex "marriage" proponents become "hateful bigots" and "discriminate" against three or more people who want to be "married?" Or will "marriage equality" for threesomes or more prevail? 
 
The Roe and Doe decisions of the Court in 1973 did not settle the abortion issue.  This deplorable decision today will not settle what marriage means.

 
*Earl Warren, The Bill of Rights and the Military, 37 N.Y.U. L. REV. 181, 193 (1962), Reprinted in, The Air Force Law Review, VOL. 60, 2007, pp 16-17.

 

Call to Action: We're still standing for marriage - stand with us.

June 26, 2015

Today, five justices on the Supreme Court have overturned the votes of 50 million Americans and demanded that the American people walk away from millenia of history and the reality of human nature. In reaching a decision so lacking in foundation in the text of the Constitution, in our history, and in our traditions, the Court has done serious damage to its own legitimacy. Just as with Roe v. Wade in 1973, the courts will not have the final say on this profound social matter. We will not lapse into silence but will continue to speak uncompromisingly for the truth about what marriage is, always has been, and always will be: the union of one man and one woman.

On this historic day, we want to encourage you to raise your voice in support of marriage. Please join the conversation on twitter by following @TPerkins and @FRCdc and using the sample tweet below to help raise awareness about the importance of marriage and religious freedom.

Tweet this: #SCOTUS #marriage ruling is shocking abuse of power, and will never be accepted - @TPerkins

It's our belief that Americans will not stop standing for transcendent truth and will never accept the legitimacy of this decision. Truth is not decided by polls or the passage of time, but by the One who created time and everything that exists therein. The grass withers, the flowers fade, but the word of our God will stand forever. Isaiah 40:8

Sincerely,
Family Research Council

Bishop EW Jackson: "We will never submit to the Supreme Court's ruling on 'same-sex marriage'"

"WE WILL NEVER SUBMIT!"

 

The Supreme Court's decision to create a Constitutional right of "marriage" between two people of the same gender, will go down in history as one of the most irrational and destructive in American jurisprudential history. By doing so the Court has undermined its own legitimacy, usurped a role reserved to the states, defied the will of the American people and declared war on the First Amendment, Bible believing Christians and God.

 

To quote Justice Scalia, this is nothing short of a "threat to Democracy." A majority of nine judges do not rule America; the people do. The definition of marriage has existed for all of human history and is enshrined in the beliefs of Christians, Jews and Muslims. It is validated by natural law and the obvious biological impulse to procreate. The Supreme Court has just overturned thousands of years of history, culture and human understanding of what a marriage is.

 

Now this serpent will continue to wind its way through every aspect of American culture at an accelerated pace. Children must be retaught, schools will adjust their curriculum, business owners will be forced to accept what their hearts know is not right. True Christians, knowing they must obey God rather than men, will come into direct conflict with our government. But we will never submit.

 

STAND ("Staying True to America's National Destiny"), MINISTERS TAKING A STAND and VETERANS TAKING A STAND will continue to fight for the Judeo-Christian principles which made America a blessed, prosperous and powerful nation. We are calling for a U.S. Constitutional Amendment overturning the Supreme Court's decision, and defining marriage as the union of one man and one woman.

 

We urge all Americans, regardless of race, denomination, or political party to join with us in fighting for the restoration of Judeo-Christian values and religious liberty in America.

 

~END~

 

E.W. Jackson is Bishop of THE CALLED Church, a Marine Corps Veteran, 2013 Republican Nominee for Lt. Governor of Virginia, President of STAND [www.standamerica.us] and Senior Fellow for Family Research Council.

Congressman Robert Hurt Welcomes New Jobs to Henry County

Monday, June 1, 2015

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Robert Hurt (R-Virginia) released the following statement after Monogram Food Solutions, a manufacturer of quality meat snacks, announced it will create over 100 new jobs in Henry County:

"At a time when unemployment in Southside remains all too high, I am pleased that Monogram is, once again, adding much-needed jobs in our area.  Their decision to again expand investment in their Henry County operations is a testament to the hardworking people of Martinsville and Henry County.   I thank the company, Governor McAuliffe, state and local lawmakers, the Virginia Economic Development Partnership, the Virginia Tobacco Indemnification and Community Revitalization Commission, and the Martinsville - Henry County Economic Development Corporation for their commitment to economic development.  I look forward to continuing to work with state and local leaders and advancing policies that will spur economic growth and get Virginia's Fifth District back to work."