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SDA KINSHIP PRESS RELEASE Seventh-day Adventist Kinship joins with those of many other religious traditions in rejoicing over the ruling by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals that Proposition 8 – which was narrowly approved by voters in 2008 – is unconstitutional. Yolanda Elliott, President of Seventh-day Adventist Kinship stated, “1888 was an important year in Adventist history. It was also the first year the Supreme Court ruled that marriage is a basic civil right. They have repeated that ruling 14 times for different cases, but again and again it has been denied to loving, faithful gay or lesbian couples.” Echoing the words of other religious leaders, Terry Rice, Church Relations director, said, “The Ninth Circuit’s decision affirms same-sex couples’ freedom to commit to care for each other for a lifetime. Thank God the court recognized government should never limit our freedom nor deny anyone’s love.” Both Elliott and Rice called upon pastors and leaders across North America to extend a generous pastoral response to the thousands of gays and lesbians in congregations and those who have been chased from congregations by well-meaning individuals. Now is a time to show the love of Christ to all the members of our church family. Kinship agrees with the statement released by “Adventists Against Prop 8”: “This is a decision that all Seventh-day Adventists who are committed to religious liberty and the gospel of Jesus Christ can celebrate. It points out unjust and immoral discrimination by its right name. It sets the nation further in the trajectory of recognizing full equality of gays and lesbians in all areas of life. This decision affirms the truth that the moral arc of the universe indeed bends toward justice.” “We concur with the majority decision which said, in part… 'Although the Constitution permits communities to enact laws they believe to be desirable, it requires that there be at least a legitimate reason for the passage of a law that treats different classes of people differently. There was no such reason that Proposition 8 should have been enacted. … Proposition 8 serves no purpose, and has no effect, other than to lessen the status and human dignity of gays and lesbians in California, and to officially reclassify their relationships and families as inferior to those of opposite-sex couples. The Constitution simply does not allow for laws of this sort. –Judge Stephen Reinhardt, United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit'” |
| Last Updated on Friday, 10 February 2012 00:19 |
