As we stood in front of the United States Supreme Court, among the crowds of people supporting homosexual “marriage,” we couldn’t help but feel discouraged. Among the multitude of people, there were but a few, like us, who stood for traditional marriage, awaiting the fate of DOMA and Prop 8.
Would the United States continue to recognize marriage as the union of a man and a woman, or would “gay marriage” become legal? As the hours ticked and the number of supporters grew, so did our anticipation.
We spoke with a family of four who stood in line waiting for the opportunity to get into the courtroom to hear the decision at it was handed down. The family had been waiting in line since 6 a.m., which in comparison to most, was very late. We asked the family why this case was important to them, and the father prompted his 13-year-old son to give the answer. The boy stated that this was a very historic day, and it was very special to them, because they had family and friends who were “gay,” and they wanted to be there to support them.
Surprisingly enough, there were many people dressed as clergy, however their message had no Biblical basis, as one clergyman preached that, “Everything in the Bible is contextual,” and, therefore, “You cannot take Scripture and ‘plop’ it into today’s society.” Alongside the clergy were signs stating “Catholics for Marriage” and “Republicans for Equality.”
We spoke with one Catholic pastor who was holding a sign that sided with the Biblical truth on marriage. He predicted that more pro-marriage supporters would show up closer to 10 a.m., when the ruling would be announced; however, he was incorrect. Supporters of “gay marriage” were in abundance, holding signs, wearing clothing with strong statements, while chanting, “What do we want? Equality! When do we want it? Now!”
Temperatures and tensions rose in that hotspot of spiritual and cultural warfare. After the ruling was handed down, our immediate reaction was disappointment. We could not believe that our federal government would no longer recognize marriage as the union between one man and one woman.
What was the most shocking about our experience was the fact that there was no clear praise by the “gay marriage” supporters after the ruling was announced. While there were a few instances where the crowd would cheer, there was no real celebration. We were astonished that after such a strong show of support, they had such little response.
As young, unmarried women, we feel the meaning of our future vows have already been diminished. As Christians, we believe that marriage is a union between a husband and wife that displays the love God has for His church. However, when this union is recognized as something different than God’s holy plan for marriage, the meaning of those sacred vows are no longer there.
Today’s guest blogger is Lindsay Utsman, an intern with Concerned Women for America’s Ronald Reagan Memorial Internship Program. For more information on how you can intern with Concerned Women for America, click here.