Texans voted Tuesday to make same-sex marriages and civil unions unconstitutional.
The highly contested and controversial constitutional amendment defining a marriage in Texas as a union solely between one man and one woman passed by 76 percent, as of press time Tuesday.
Previously, gay marriages were outlawed in Texas, but the law granted judges discretion to allow civil unions.
“The passage of this amendment reaffirms the will of the mainstream Texans and protects the sanctity of marriage from activist judges who might seek to redefine it,” said state Sen. Todd Staples in a statement.
Staples, R-Palestine, sponsored the bill authored by state Rep. Warren Chisum, R-Pampa.
Chisum said he was thrilled but not surprised that the proposition passed.
“We’ve always been a conservative state that values family, and this just proves it in spades,” Chisum said. “You put the proper issue out there, and people will show up [to vote].”
Every state except for Massachusetts outlaws gay marriage. Texas became the 18th state to write a same-sex marriage ban into its constitution Tuesday.
By Marjon Rostami
The Daily Texan (Online)
Analysis:
It is gratifying that most Texans, at least, believe that marriage, by definition, is a “union solely between one man and one woman.” The amendment to the state constitution gives some protection, for now, to the institution of marriage in our state.
The long term outlook is not quite as encouraging. The trend for decades has been toward a destruction of family and traditional values. Other states will most probably follow Massachusetts lead, and legalize gay marriage. There is also the possibility that future federal rulings could trump the Texas’ amendment.
Mankind has often changed societal laws in rebellion to God’s standards of righteousness. Jesus alluded to this with regard to the Jew’s divorce law when he said in Matthew 19, “Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, permitted you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so” (vs. 8). A modern example would be the 1973 supreme court decision which overruled laws prohibiting abortion.
While men can rebel against God, they can’t change by declaration what is true. In this case, that marriage is between one man and one woman. God established the institution, and God defines its conventions, “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh” (Genesis 2:24).
Regardless, we are gratified that a small victory for right was won during Tuesday’s election, and pray that such demonstrations of moral thinking continue.
