WHEREAS, God established the family as the primary and most influential social institution of mankind and ordained that each human family begin only with the marriage of one man and one woman (Genesis 2:18-25; Matthew 19:4-6; Mark 10:6-8; Hebrews 13:4); and
WHEREAS, The viability, strength, and stability of the social order within any nation is more dependent upon the wellbeing of this traditional family structure than any other social institution or agency; and
WHEREAS, This traditional family provides the best environment for birthing, training, and nurturing future generations (Deuteronomy 6:4-9); and
WHEREAS, The Baptist Faith and Message, adopted by the Southern Baptist Convention in 2000, contains “Article XVIII. The Family,” which states, “Marriage is the uniting of one man and one woman in covenant commitment for a lifetime”; and
WHEREAS, The sacred institution of marriage is now under destructive attack in some state and federal courts and state legislatures, as well as numerous private and public entities; and
WHEREAS, Some state courts have proven unable to defend traditional marriage, ruling instead that God’s design for marriage as only the union of one man and one woman is unconstitutional; and
WHEREAS, State remedies protecting marriage are vulnerable to federal rulings; and
WHEREAS, Americans in nineteen states have voted by an average of 71 percent to amend their state constitutions to define marriage as only the union of one man and one woman; and
WHEREAS, The United States Senate on two separate occasions failed to invoke cloture on a federal constitutional amendment defining marriage as only the union of one man and one woman; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the messengers to the Southern Baptist Convention meeting in Greensboro, North Carolina, June 13-14, 2006, express our grave disappointment with those senators who refused to allow the state legislatures the opportunity to affirm the will of the people on the biblical and traditional definition of marriage; and be it further
RESOLVED, That we urge the United States House of Representatives to vote affirmatively on the Marriage Protection Amendment at the earliest possible moment and to represent the convictions of the vast majority of Americans, who believe that marriage should be only the union of one man and one woman; and be it finally
RESOLVED, That we encourage those states that have not enacted laws defining marriage as only the union of one man and one woman to do so as soon as possible, before a judge forces them to accept so called “same-sex marriage.”
Greensboro, NC
