WASHINGTON, D.C., Feb. 23, 2015The Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention submitted an amicus brief today to the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals arguing that marriage between a man and a woman is vital to the welfare of children, families and society.
The brief, submitted in the case of Lawson v. Missouri, demonstrates that limiting marriage to heterosexual unions is not the result of animus, but of clear biblical teaching and concerns for social welfare.
ERLC President Russell Moore commented on the brief:
In this brief, we are standing together for a truth as old as human civilization itself. The state did not create the family, and cannot recreate it. We appeal to the Court to recognize and to stay within the limits of its authority. Marriage matters because marriage is about more than registering relationships at a courthouse. Marriage is about the common good and flourishing of society. And, as a Christian, I believe with Jesus and the apostles that marriage points beyond creation to the gospel union of Christ and his church.
The ERLC joined the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, National Association of Evangelicals, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and other diverse religious organizations in filing the brief.
The Eighth Circuit Court was the first appellate court to rule against same-sex marriage in 2006 when it upheld Nebraskas ban on same-sex marriage.
The Southern Baptist Convention is Americas largest Protestant denomination with more than 15.8 million members in over 46,000 churches nationwide. The Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission is the SBCs ethics, religious liberty and public policy agency with offices in Nashville, Tenn., and Washington, D.C.
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