civil marriage

Staver Claims Lisa Miller "Just Dropped Off The Face Of The Earth"

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Monday, 6/27/2011 9:54 am

Back in May Sarah Posner reported that, at the height of the Lisa Miller saga, her attorneys at Liberty Counsel were teaching Liberty University law students that anyone in Miller's situation had an obligation to ignore the law and engage in "civil disobedience" in order to uphold God's law.

So when Miller subsequently kidnapped her daughter and fled the country, it seemed rather suspicious, to say the least, especially since Miller was reportedly living in a vacation home owned by the father of a Liberty Law School employee ... but Mat Staver and Liberty Counsel continue to insist that they had no involvement and have no idea where she is:  

The lawyer for Miller's ex-partner, Janet Jenkins, told the FBI she got a call in June 2010 from someone — she won't say who — who told her that Lisa Miller and the girl had stayed in a beach house in coastal San Juan del Sur, about 68 miles south of Managua.

The house is owned by Philip Zodhiates, the father of Liberty University law school administrative assistant Victoria Hyden, according to the FBI. Jenkins' attorney, Sarah Star, told the FBI that the caller told her Zodhiates had asked his daughter to put out a request for supplies for Lisa Miller.

Located in Lynchburg, Va., Liberty University was founded by the late Rev. Jerry Falwell. An affiliate of the university, conservative Christian law firm Liberty Counsel, formerly represented Miller in her court case in Vermont over custody of the girl.

Law school dean Mathew Staver — who leads Liberty Counsel — has said Zodhiates isn't affiliated with either.

"From our perspective, she just dropped off the face of the Earth. We haven't heard from her or from anyone who said they've heard from her," Staver said of Lisa Miller.

The AP reports that Miller has become a Mennonite and is being sheltered and protected by Mennonite missionaries Nicaragua who see it as their duty to help "Lisa not only free herself from the so called civil marriage and lesbian lifestyle, but especially to protect her nine year old daughter from being abducted and handed over to an active lesbian and a whole-hearted activist."

Disgraced Ten Commandments Judge Heads To Iowa to Seek Removal of Iowa Judges

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Monday, 10/18/2010 3:19 pm

Earlier today we noted that Cornerstone World Outreach Church in Sioux City, Iowa was playing a leading role in right-wing effort to remove three Supreme Court Justices over the ruling in favor of marriage equality.

And nothing quite demonstrates the extremism of Cornerstone's so-called "Project Jeremiah" effort to overturn the "ungodly decisions of the Iowa Supreme Court" like bringing in disgraced "Ten Commandments" judge Roy Moore on behalf of the effort:

On October 16-18, 2010, Judge Roy Moore, former Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice, will speak to pastors and others across the State of Iowa about the need for Christians to become involved in upcoming elections. Specifically, three Appellate Court Justices on the Iowa Supreme Court are on the Nov. 2 ballot and are being opposed for their recent vote to extend civil marriage rights to same-sex couples.

Judge Moore will speak at rallies and meetings in Oskaloosa, Sioux City, and Perry, Iowa and will be a guest on WHO Radio in Des Moines with Steve Deace. WHO Radio, where President Ronald Reagan once served as host, is a strong conservative voice in Iowa.

Judge Moore's speaking events:

Saturday, October 16th

7:00 p.m. Public Rally at William Penn University in Oskaloosa , IA

Sunday, October 17th

10:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon Cornerstone World Outreach morning church services in Sioux City , IA

6:00 p.m. Evening Church Service at Abundant Life Fellowship in Jefferson , IA

Monday, October 18th

4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. on the air across Iowa with Steve Deace, WHO Radio, Des Moines , IA

Apparently, right-wingers in Iowa think the best person to make the case for removing three sitting Supreme Court Justices is a former Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice who was himself removed from office for "willfully and publicly" defying federal court orders.

Iowa Marriage Ruling: The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Friday, 4/3/2009 11:39 am

Obviously, the Iowa Supreme Court's unanimous ruling that the state's ban on same-sex marriage is unconstitutional is a pretty big deal ... a big enough deal, in fact, that it seems to have crashed the court's website as people try to access the decision.

Fortunately, Pam has grabbed and posted a PDF of the ruling and so we wanted to highlight this good section of the ruling in which the court lays out clearly and firmly the basic difference between religious and civil marriage and notes that granting equality in the latter in no way undermines or denigrates the former:

This contrast of opinions in our society largely explains the absence of any religion-based rationale to test the constitutionality of Iowa’s same-sex marriage ban. Our constitution does not permit any branch of government to resolve these types of religious debates and entrusts to courts the task of ensuring government avoids them ... The statute at issue in this case does not prescribe a definition of marriage for religious institutions. Instead, the statute declares, “Marriage is a civil contract” and then regulates that civil contract. Thus, in pursuing our task in this case, we proceed as civil judges, far removed from the theological debate of religious clerics, and focus only on the concept of civil marriage and the state licensing system that identifies a limited class of persons entitled to secular rights and benefits associated with civil marriage.

We, of course, have a constitutional mandate to protect the free exercise of religion in Iowa, which includes the freedom of a religious organization to define marriages it solemnizes as unions between a man and a woman ... This mission to protect religious freedom is consistent with our task to prevent government from endorsing any religious view. State government can have no religious views, either directly or indirectly, expressed through its legislation ... This proposition is the essence of the separation of church and state.

As a result, civil marriage must be judged under our constitutional standards of equal protection and not under religious doctrines or the religious views of individuals. This approach does not disrespect or denigrate the religious views of many Iowans who may strongly believe in marriage as a dual-gender union, but considers, as we must, only the constitutional rights of all people, as expressed by the promise of equal protection for all. We are not permitted to do less and would damage our constitution immeasurably by trying to do more ...

In the final analysis, we give respect to the views of all Iowans on the issue of same-sex marriage—religious or otherwise—by giving respect to our constitutional principles. These principles require that the state recognize both opposite-sex and same-sex civil marriage. Religious doctrine and views contrary to this principle of law are unaffected, and people can continue to associate with the religion that best reflects their views. A religious denomination can still define marriage as a union between a man and a woman, and a marriage ceremony performed by a minister, priest, rabbi, or other person ordained or designated as a leader of the person’s religious faith does not lose its meaning as a sacrament or other religious institution.

The sanctity of all religious marriages celebrated in the future will have the same meaning as those celebrated in the past. The only difference is civil marriage will now take on a new meaning that reflects a more complete understanding of equal protection of the law. This result is what our constitution requires.

Now for the bad - the ruling just came down and already we are seeing conservative critics pitching a fit, calling the decision "69 pages of blather" and "gobbledygook" written by "judicial knaves who proudly regard themselves as trailblazers" and will only see more of this sort of outrage as the day progresses ... which will likely entail more ugly things like this press release from Peter LaBarbera:

Today Iowa becomes the first state not on either of the nation's two liberal coasts to impose homosexual 'marriage' or its mischievous twin, 'civil unions,' on its citizens through judicial tyranny. To call this decision bankrupt is to understate its perniciousness. The evil genius of the pro-sodomy movement is that it targets noble institutions like marriage and adoption in the name of 'rights,' and then perverts them to normalize aberrant behaviors.

Homosexual 'marriage' is wrong because homosexual behavior itself is wrong and destructive -- as proved by its role in the early deaths of countless 'gay' men ... When the courts order society to effectively pretend that changeable sexual misbehavior is a 'civil right,' the law itself becomes perverted by punishing people of faith for their proper opposition toward deviant sex ... It is high time for pastors, in Iowa and across the land, to shake off their stifling, politically correct timidity and again become the prophetic voices for Truth they were called to be: by boldly warning Americans about the perils of our growing accommodation with the sins of proud homosexuality, and sex outside marriage in general.

Dueling Over DOMA

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Wednesday, 12/17/2008 5:42 pm

A few weeks ago, we here at People For unveiled our Dump DOMA campaign, asking those who care about equality to contact Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi and urge them to pass legislation repealing the Defense of Marriage Act:

It’s time to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). At this moment of change and progress, it’s time to undo a serious mistake made by Congress 12 years ago. The federal government has no business discriminating against loving families by selectively withholding the 1,300 or so legal protections that only legal civil marriage affords.

It’s time for Congress to show leadership on this issue and send President-elect Obama legislation repealing DOMA which he has said he would sign.

Now, via On Top Magazine, we see that the Alliance for Marriage has unveiled their own Protect DOMA website to press for just the opposite:

The Alliance for Marriage Foundation, the group who drafted the Marriage Protection Amendment (MPA) in Congress, has begun a national campaign to protect the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in the upcoming 111th Congress.

The diverse coalition has also unveiled www.ProtectDOMA.org a new online resource to protect DOMA – and the marriage laws of every state where voters have spoken on the issue of marriage – from attack at the federal level.

“The repeal of DOMA is the legislative Holy Grail for activists who want to impose their radical social agenda upon America through the courts,” said Rev. Sam Rodriguez, Jr., an AFM Advisory Board Member and President of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference (NHCLC).

“As demonstrated in California, over 70% of the African-American community rejects the utterly false argument that gay activists have a ‘civil right’ to redefine marriage for our entire society,” said Niger Innis, an AFM Advisory Board Member and National Spokesman for the Congress of Racial Equality.

The AIM initiative announced that it is going to be especially focused on mobilizing Latinos:

The Alliance for Marriage Foundation will work to continue to expand our education and mobilization efforts – especially within the Latino community – so that both marriage and freedom of conscience will remain protected in our nation.

The prize in this historic struggle is nothing less than the future of our children and grandchildren.

...

Groups on the Left generally take Latino votes for granted. But the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life is the latest research foundation to document that this dynamic does not apply with respect to marriage and the family. On the contrary, support for marriage and family within the Latino community runs deep. This support is expressed when Latinos are given an opportunity to vote on the issue of marriage itself.

U.S. Census data shows that Latinos are the fastest-growing ethnic group, representing the largest minority in the country. According to data from 2005, there are approximately 42 million Latinos in the United States, which represents approximately 1 in every 8 residents. In fact, a majority of children entering high school, workers entering the workforce and newly-eligible voters will be Latino by 2020.

In the years ahead, the ProtectDOMA.org will continue to build a broad movement – with a positive message that has mainstream appeal --- in order to deliver the margin of victory in the struggle to protect marriage for the sake of our children and grandchildren. At the same time, we will also continue to develop leaders who can give winsome expression to the timeless values that are essential to the well-being of our nation.

Maybe now would be a good time to add your signature to our Dump DOMA petition.

Anti-Gay Scholars Hit Political Road

Submitted by Anonymous on Monday, 12/10/2007 7:05 pm

The Religious Right looks to Maggie Gallagher and Robert George for intellectual cover when arguing that same-sex couples shouldn’t be allowed to marry, but whatever credibility they have as independent scholars will be put to the test by their new venture, the National Organization for Marriage.

Gallagher, president of the low-key Institute for Marriage and Public Policy (and perhaps most famous for taking money from the Bush Administration while promoting its marriage policy), and George, a Princeton professor, started NOM in order to lobby against marriage equality for same-sex couples and to campaign against legislators connected to the issue. The group ran this billboard in Massachusetts before the state’s 2007 election (image via Good As You):

Massachusetts billboard

The group is airing a radio ad in New Jersey against a bill that would allow same-sex couples to marry, featuring a child saying, “God creating Adam and Eve? That was so old-fashioned.” Although the bill, entitled “Civil Marriage and Religious Protection Act,” explicitly states that no religious group would be required to sanction any marriage (a requirement the First Amendment prohibits anyway) , the NOM ad hits on public fears that marriage equality for same-sex couples would imperil churches, stating, “They also want to penalize traditional New Jersey churches with threats to state tax exemptions and adoption licenses.”

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civil marriage Posts Archive

Staver Claims Lisa Miller "Just Dropped Off The Face Of The Earth"
SUBMITTED BY: Kyle Mantyla, Monday 06/27/2011, 9:54am
Back in May Sarah Posner reported that, at the height of the Lisa Miller saga, her attorneys at Liberty Counsel were teaching Liberty University law students that anyone in Miller's situation had an obligation to ignore the law and engage in "civil disobedience" in order to uphold God's law. So when Miller subsequently kidnapped her daughter and fled the country, it seemed rather suspicious, to say the least, especially since Miller was reportedly living in a vacation home owned by the father of a Liberty Law School employee ... but Mat Staver and Liberty Counsel continue to insist... MORE
Disgraced Ten Commandments Judge Heads To Iowa to Seek Removal of Iowa Judges
SUBMITTED BY: Kyle Mantyla, Monday 10/18/2010, 3:19pm
Earlier today we noted that Cornerstone World Outreach Church in Sioux City, Iowa was playing a leading role in right-wing effort to remove three Supreme Court Justices over the ruling in favor of marriage equality. And nothing quite demonstrates the extremism of Cornerstone's so-called "Project Jeremiah" effort to overturn the "ungodly decisions of the Iowa Supreme Court" like bringing in disgraced "Ten Commandments" judge Roy Moore on behalf of the effort: On October 16-18, 2010, Judge Roy Moore, former Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice, will speak to... MORE
Iowa Marriage Ruling: The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly
SUBMITTED BY: Kyle Mantyla, Friday 04/03/2009, 11:39am
Obviously, the Iowa Supreme Court's unanimous ruling that the state's ban on same-sex marriage is unconstitutional is a pretty big deal ... a big enough deal, in fact, that it seems to have crashed the court's website as people try to access the decision.Fortunately, Pam has grabbed and posted a PDF of the ruling and so we wanted to highlight this good section of the ruling in which the court lays out clearly and firmly the basic difference between religious and civil marriage and notes that granting equality in the latter in no way undermines or denigrates the former:This contrast of... MORE
Dueling Over DOMA
SUBMITTED BY: Kyle Mantyla, Wednesday 12/17/2008, 5:42pm
A few weeks ago, we here at People For unveiled our Dump DOMA campaign, asking those who care about equality to contact Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi and urge them to pass legislation repealing the Defense of Marriage Act:It’s time to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). At this moment of change and progress, it’s time to undo a serious mistake made by Congress 12 years ago. The federal government has no business discriminating against loving families by selectively withholding the 1,300 or so legal protections that only legal civil marriage affords.It’s time for... MORE
Anti-Gay Scholars Hit Political Road
, Monday 12/10/2007, 7:05pm
The Religious Right looks to Maggie Gallagher and Robert George for intellectual cover when arguing that same-sex couples shouldn’t be allowed to marry, but whatever credibility they have as independent scholars will be put to the test by their new venture, the National Organization for Marriage. Gallagher, president of the low-key Institute for Marriage and Public Policy (and perhaps most famous for taking money from the Bush Administration while promoting its marriage policy), and George, a Princeton professor, started NOM in order to lobby against marriage equality... MORE