Marriage Resolutions Passed in Eight SBC State Conventions
Messengers to eight Southern Baptist Convention (SBC)-related state bodies voted for resolutions to protect marriage, reaffirming once again that the Southern Baptists are alive, well and ready to battle for their beliefs.
Messengers to eight Southern Baptist Convention (SBC)-related state bodies voted for resolutions to protect marriage, reaffirming once again that the Southern Baptists are alive, well and ready to battle for their beliefs.
Southern Baptists in Alabama, North Carolina, Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi and California, voted overwhelmingly to officially back the passage of marriage resolutions that would define marriage as between a man and a woman only, in their respective states. Most of the amendments mirror the famed Federal Marriage Amendment (FMA) in their prohibition of gay “marriages;” some go further by banning all forms of civil unions as well.
Regardless of location, supporters to the constitutional amendments all agreed that such a measure was necessary to stop activist judges from legalizing gay “marriages” across the states. Opponents to the amendments meanwhile argued that the Defense of Marriage Act and other existing laws are enough to protect marriage. However, supporters took note that anything short of a constitutional amendment can be overturned by the court – as the Massachusetts courts did by legalizing gay “marriages” last year.
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In nearly all cases, the amendments passed with overwhelming support.
According to the Associated Baptist Press, the typical state convention action was the resolution that affirmed “"biblical and legal marriage is between one man and one woman" and is "the only marriage ordained of God." The resolution calls for the U.S. Congress and the Alabama legislature to pass constitutional amendments limiting marriage to a man and a woman.
In the case of the Florida Baptist Convention, messengers pledged to work with other “like-minded denominations” to ensure that the traditional definition of marriage stands in the state constitution. The statement calls for legislation defining marriage "as the union between a man and a woman" and "the God-ordained building block of the family and bedrock of civil society."
