Reinforcing the Foundation

In the face of the aggressive efforts of the Supreme Court of Massachusetts, the mayor of San Francisco, and others attempting to radically redefine marriage, President Bush yesterday boldly announced his unequivocal support for a federal marriage amendment. "After more than two centuries of American jurisprudence and millennia of human experience," President Bush said, "a few judges and local authorities are presuming to change the most fundamental institution of civilization. Their action has created confusion on an issue that requires clarity." Those activist judges make the future of the Defense of Marriage legislation very uncertain. And so the president has concluded, "Activist courts have left the people with one recourse. If we are to prevent the meaning of marriage from being changed forever, our nation must enact a constitutional amendment to protect marriage in America." Amen, and thank you, Mr. President. In recent years, many liberal initiatives have not made it through Congress. Knowing the people won't support them, activists have resorted to the courts, and the courts have acted more and more as super-legislatures -- making, rather than interpreting, law. This happened with abortion, and it's happening with same-sex "marriages." Only a constitutional amendment can stop this judicial arrogance. The president's support is crucially important for several reasons. First, it adds muscle to the long struggle required to amend the Constitution. Second, he's defending the family. The attack on marriage is an assault on the family, the most basic building block of human culture. Marriage and procreation are inextricably linked in the moral order, but they have become decoupled by the sexual revolution. Same-sex "marriage" would tear them apart completely. This would lead to an increase in out-of-wedlock births and family dissolution, just as it has in Norway where courts imposed same-sex "marriage" on the country a decade ago. This is a particularly critical issue to me, because in nearly thirty years of prison ministry, I've seen the disastrous consequences of family breakup. More than half the inmates in prison come from broken families. Inmates typically lack male and female role models (a dad and a mom) who are the moral influences that inform their consciences early in life. Anything that causes family breakdown will increase crime and social disorder. Only a society that has abandoned reason would knowingly undermine the family. I've asked Mark Earley, former Attorney General of Virginia and now president of Prison Fellowship, to address another issue that is vital to us that has been raised by this same-sex "marriage" drive -- that is, the rule of law. So be sure to read "BreakPoint" tomorrow. Many times on "BreakPoint" I have asked you to get involved in issues, important ones. But never has there been one as important for Christians as this. Marriage is not a partisan issue. This has to do with protecting the most fundamental institution of human life, one of the three institutions ordained by God. If you've called before and have material about this issue, that's fine. But if you haven't, please call us today (1-877-322-5527). And then call or e-mail the White House and thank the president for his courageous stand. Urge your senators and congressman, as well, to get moving on this amendment, the most titanic struggle of the culture war to date. Take action: Thank President George W. Bush for supporting a constitutional amendment to define marriage as a union of one man and one woman. E-mail president@whitehouse.gov. Call 202-456-1111. Or write: The White House, 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., Washington, D.C. 20500. For further reading and information: "President Calls for Constitutional Amendment Protecting Marriage," White House Office of the Press Secretary, 24 February 2004. See also the press briefing by Scott McClellan. Debbie Reichmann, "Bush to Back Gay Marriage Ban Amendment," Associated Press, 24 February 2004. Cal Thomas, "Reflected Virtue," Jewish World Review, 19 February 2004. BreakPoint Commentary No. 040218, "Ward and Ward Cleaver." John Fund, "Marriage of Inconvenience," Wall Street Journal, 23 February 2004. Visit Maggie Gallagher's website on the Marriage Debate. Sign BreakPoint's online petition in favor of the Federal Marriage Amendment. Call 1-877-3-CALLBP to request the complimentary Marriage Amendment information packet, which includes articles on marriage and family by William Bennett and Stanley Kurtz, the Evangelicals and Catholics Together statement on marriage, the text of the Federal Marriage Amendment, and a chart from the Alliance for Marriage outlining the legal impact of the amendment. Also available is the BreakPoint Speak the Truth in Love resource kit ($25), which includes CDs, booklets, articles, and more to help you speak effectively and compassionately on the issue of homosexuality and marriage. Visit One Hundred Thousand Ministers for information on what pastors can do. Visit BreakPoint's Sanctity of Marriage resource page.

02/25/04