By Dr. Mark H. Creech
Christian Action League
This week, Rev. Kathryn Cartledge and Elizabeth Eve, a lesbian couple, made their way to the Register of Deeds Office in Asheville, and requested a license to marry. They were joined by two other same-sex couples, who made the same request, while a group of supporters including North Carolina State Representatives Susan Fisher and Patsy Keever, as well as Asheville City Council Member Gordon Smith, looked on.
Although, each same sex couple was denied a marriage license, they were prepared for that response and say that they plan to be back at a later time to request a license again. They are part of the ‘We Do Campaign’ organized by Southern Equality, which involves about a dozen same sex couples supported by a team of clergy, elected officials and community members who want to challenge North Carolina’s current law which defines marriage as one man and one woman.
If anyone ever doubted whether the Tar Heel state really needed a Marriage Protection Amendment to its Constitution, they should doubt no more! After this fiasco, it should be abundantly clear that certain state lawmakers, gay rights advocates and other supporters will never settle for anything less than the redefinition of what is currently referred to as “holy matrimony” in this state. It should be understood that an objective of demonstrations of this order is usually the pre-requisite to the filing of a lawsuit challenging state marriage laws.
For quite some time now, many gay rights advocates and supporters in this state have argued against a constitutional amendment on marriage, saying North Carolina already has a prohibition against same-sex marriage sufficient to protect traditional nuptials. But wait a minute, what’s this? Now same-sex couples are applying for marriage licenses in Asheville with a possible prospect of a court challenge to the state’s existing marriage statutes. Could it be their arguments touting the protections of the present-day law were nothing more than a disingenuous ploy to allay fears, while buying more time for them to craftily work at imposing their extremist views on the majority? Absolutely!
Alarmed? It should set off a siren with additional bells and whistles in one’s head!
The history of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender (LGBT) movement has always been to move incrementally, assuring concerned citizens that their program presents no danger. Slowly, they turn up the heat on the frog in the kettle, so to speak. But once they believe the time is right to strike, they’ll show their real intentions by revealing the goal as something most agree to be shocking and outrageous.
Michael Youssef recently referenced in an article the subtle progression of homosexual activism, saying: “Initially homosexual lobbyists groups said, ‘All we want is to be left alone.’ Then a few years later, they said, ‘We just want our lifestyle to be accepted.’ Not long after that it was, ‘We want our lifestyle to be recognized as a civil union.’ And finally it went all the way to, ‘We want nothing less than marriage,’ which, since creation, has been defined and accepted as a sacred institution between a man and a woman.” [1]
If one is not yet alarmed, one should become alarmed, because the ultimate purpose of the movement to legalize same-sex marriage is to create an entirely different legal structure with respect to the institution of marriage – a structure that is as changeable as the wind, staked on nothing more than personal autonomy.
This slippery slope is visible from where we stand and unless something is done to stop this runaway same-sex marriage train, in due course it will essentially mean the end of traditional marriage. Moreover, it will mean marriage is doomed to become largely, if not totally, irrelevant. For if marriage is ultimately to mean anything to anyone; it is also destined to mean nothing to most.
Whether they recognize it or not, the same-sex couples applying for marriage licenses in Asheville are parts of a larger agenda that is not seeking a “live and let live” approach. They are either purposely or unwittingly the instruments of a crusade to enshrine erroneous views in law concerning marriage for all of North Carolina and the nation – most of which confuse sentiment with what actually structures marriage as a social institution. Should their scheme succeed, it will seriously hurt children, the nation’s health, and its prosperity. Certainly not all at once, it could take years for the legal changes to significantly affect the culture, but the pain of it will inevitably be felt by all – a pain that overtime will become unbearable.
This is why the Marriage Protection Amendment that will come before North Carolina’s electorate in May is so urgent. It will put the question of how the culture will define marriage before all of the state’s citizens, allowing them to determine what marriage should finally mean. It puts the question above the decision of a rogue or activist judiciary, above the decision of a legislative body that would be careless or less deliberative than it ought, and above the itinerary of a minority committed to coercing the majority into compliance.
What is more, the Marriage Protection Amendment to be considered by voters in May recognizes that changing the name of marriage and calling it a civil union or a domestic partnership, essentially legalizing same-sex bonds short of calling it “marriage,” will do nothing to actually resolve the matter in question. Rebranding a bad law does nothing to alleviate the negative consequences of it. Besides, homosexual activists will never settle for these types of arrangements, as has been proven in places like Vermont, Connecticut and New Hampshire, where their efforts “by a thousand cuts” ultimately lead to civil unions becoming same-sex marriages.
Still doubting whether the state of North Carolina really needs a Marriage Protection Amendment to its Constitution? Doubt no more! Gay rights advocates in Asheville are showing their real intentions for this state right now. The ‘We Do’ Campaign, as well as a host of gay rights organizations, lawmakers and supporters, is zealously committed to redefining marriage for the Tar Heel state. They want to completely change the entire legal structure for the institution. They want to change how the culture sees marriage, not just for themselves, but for everyone and future generations.
Resources:
[1] http://www.michaelyoussef.com/michaels-blogs/same-sex-marriage-equality-or-burning-consciences.html
