Same-Sex "Marriage" Act
S5884 Duane - A8590 O'Donnell
OPPOSED
Changes the definition of marriage to include members of the same-sex by
amending the Domestic Relations Law, including the requirements for a marriage license.
Many forces are attacking marriage in New York State. These forces are
promoting marriage for same-sex couples (or the counterfeit equivalent under pseudonyms such as civil unions
or domestic partnerships) as an extension of tolerance, equality and civil rights. All these devices are
really wedges designed to overturn traditional sexual morality and to win official affirmation, celebration,
subsidization and solemnization of behavior that is harmful to the people who engage in same-sex relationships
and to society as a whole. The majority of the citizens of New York State view same-sex marriages
as morally wrong.
In 2006, the New York State Court of Appeals affirmed that marriage in New
York State is the union of a man and a woman, and that this distinction is not discrimination or contrary to
the New York State Constitution. They found that the Legislature could find “rational reasons” for this
restriction. The Court also noted:
“The idea that same-sex marriage is even possible is a relatively new one. Until a few
decades ago, it was an accepted truth for almost everyone who ever lived, in any society, in which marriage
existed, that there could be marriages between participants of different sex. A Court should not lightly
conclude that everyone who held this belief was irrational, ignorant, or bigoted. We do so conclude.”
Now the Legislature is being asked to make this conclusion, by changing the laws of the State
of New York to permit “same-sex couples”. But God created marriage as the union of a man and a woman, and therefore,
the State of New York does not have the authority to redefine it.
New Yorkers for Constitutional Freedoms (NYCF) urges the members of the New York State
Legislature to affirm this by rejecting this and any other bill that attempts to create state-approved
counterfeit marriages by any name, marriage, civil union, domestic partnerships, etc.
New Yorkers for Constitutional Freedom strongly asks the New York State Legislature to pass
this much needed legislation to protect women, their choice to carry their babies to full-term, and the unborn
children.
NYCF also ask that the Legislature consider the following concerns
Family Concerns
- Marriage is of such importance that it is uniquely protected in the law and culture. No
civilization can survive without it, and the destruction of marriage by any means is a contributing factor in
nations that have faded into history. The NY Court of Appeals affirmed that this protection is “rational.”
- Marriage encourages the sexes to complement each other’s strengths and weaknesses.
Even the most successful homosexual relationships, at best, only mimic marriage.
- Marriage is the union for the purpose of natural reproduction of the human race. Only a man and a woman can
accomplish this. Even childless marriages are a social anchor for children.
- It is wrong to create fatherless or motherless families by design. Same-sex marriages have more to do with
the desires of adults than the needs of children. Human experience and a vast body of social science research
show that children do best in married, mother-father households.
Freedom Concerns
- Marriage laws are not discriminatory. Marriage is open to all adults, subject to age
and blood relation parameters. As with any acquired status, the applicant must meet minimal requirements,
which in terms of marriage, means finding an opposite-sex spouse.
- Homosexual activists incorrectly say they need legal status so they can visit their
partners in hospitals, etc. Anyone, including homosexuals, can use legal instruments such as power of
attorney, wills, etc. to share property, designate heirs, dictate hospital visitors and give authority for
medical decisions.
- Religious Freedom is at stake. While the bill does include an exemption for religious
leaders, it makes no allowance for town clerks or justices of the peace who have a moral objection to issuing
licenses or solemnizing same-sex marriages. Requiring citizens to sanction or subsidize homosexual relationships
violates the freedom of conscience of millions of Christians, Jews, Muslims and others who believe marriage is
the union of the two sexes.
Future Concerns
If the New York legislature passes same sex marriage or civil unions, the following things will
occur.
- The definition of marriage will be destroyed. For example, if you declare that,
because it has similar properties, grape juice must be labeled identically to wine, you have destroyed the
definitions of both grape juice and wine. The term marriage refers specifically to the joining of two people
of the opposite sex. When that is lost, the term marriage becomes meaningless.
- Divorce will increase. Homosexual relationships, which usually lack both permanence
and fidelity, are unlikely to change to fit the traditional model of lifelong, faithful marriage. Instead,
society's expectations of marriage will change in response to the homosexual model, weakening the institution
of marriage. Some homosexual activists have acknowledged that they intend to use marriage mainly as a way to
radically shift society's entire conception of sexual morality.
- Businesses that decline to recognize non-marital relationships will increasingly be punished
through loss of contracts and legal action. This is already occurring in parts of New York State.
- Other groups, such as bisexuals and polygamists, will demand the right to redefine marriage
to suit their own proclivities. Once the standard of one man and one woman marriage is broken, there is no logical
stopping point.
Conclusion
NYCF believes that these concerns are real, rational, and consistent with both the Constitution of the United
States and the State of New York. NYCF urges the New York State Legislature to defend marriage and vote “NO”
on this bill and any other bill like it.
The Christian Voice In Albany
