Baptist Press is reporting that a panel for the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals heard oral arguments Monday in a high-profile case that could lead to all 50 states being forced to recognize “gay marriage.” At issue is California Proposition 8, a constitutional amendment passed by voters of that state in 2008 that defines marriage as being between one man and one woman. Its passage reversed a state Supreme Court ruling that had legalized “gay marriage.”
A lower court this year ruled Prop 8 unconstitutional, and if that decision is allowed to stand, the statutes and constitutional amendments in the 45 states that define marriage in the traditional sense, including Kentucky, could be in jeopardy. Five states recognize “gay marriage.”
California is one of 31 states that have decided the issue at the ballot, with the traditional definition winning in each instance.
Opponents of “gay marriage” warn that its legalization will negatively affect all of society, impacting everything from the tax-exempt status of religious organizations to the way private businesses are operated to what is taught in elementary schools.
Click here to read the full story from Baptist Press.
Click here to read a Baptist Press story about how the Proposition 8 deliberations impact society and what the church’s response should be. The story quotes Dr. Russell Moore, a member of the KBC’s Committee on Public Affairs.