Is the Demise of DOMA Good for Churches?; I Say 'Yes'
I woke up this morning to the breaking news: the US Supreme Court had ruled that DOMA is unconstitutional. On the heals of that news came a second wave: Prop 8 had been ruled unconstitutional. Then came the deluge of social media blasts, texts, many praising the movement, and many worrying about what this meant for US Churches.
There are numerous conservative-faith churches in the US, among them Protestant Evangelicals, Catholics, and Orthodox. Many worry that the next attack will be to force churches to marry gay persons, revoking their non-profit status if they refuse. This Christian would fight to make sure that never happened.
So is this a bad thing or good thing for US Churches?
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I believe this is a good thing.
The demise of DOMA might be interpreted by many Christians as being a blow to the sanctity of marriage. This couldn't be further from the truth. The Supreme Court has effectively upheld a more important notion for Christians: the separation of Church and State.
Over two-hundred years ago we fought for the freedom to practice our religious beliefs, however we saw fit. In fact, as a Son of the Revolution, my family had a very active part in that rebellion. They believed that all persons should be able to live in accordance with their own interpretations of scripture and faith. Most who had immigrated to the US Colonies had fled religious persecution -- chief among them, protestants (aka today's Protestant Evangelicals).
Today's Supreme Court vote, in fact, has protected our country from the very ills we fought to rid ourselves from long ago.
Today, all persons and churches will be able to decide for themselves how their faith defines marriage. Today, the sanctity of marriage has been placed back into the pulpits, where God may more effectively uphold it and where we as Christians may continue to advocate for our faith.
There is Church marriage and then there is legal marriage. In the Church, we should be able to marry according to our faith. In our laws and country, we should be able to marry regardless of our own faiths.
Today the Supreme Court has upheld this very unique separation of Church and State. And we are the better for it.
