By Jennifer Roback Morse
Why should we stand for the family, or for marriage, or for life or for any of the culturally-conservative issues?
Living in California during the Proposition 8 debates, I had a front row seat watching the "elites" mangle the meaning of marriage. The judicial elites have handed down a disastrous series of federal court decisions, solidifying governmental commitment to the ideology of the sexual revolution. The entertainment elites seem to celebrate every family form except the natural family of a loving father and mother married faithfully to one another and raising their own children together. The media elites continue their shameless manipulation of public opinion. The economic elites pour money into political and propaganda campaigns designed to prop up the structure of the sexual revolution. Academic elites continue behind-the-scenes scribbling, advocating for recreating marriage, the family, and even the human body, in their own image.
In the face of all these cultural, legal and social headwinds, why should we stand for the family?
We should stand for the family precisely because the situation seems dire: we must build a record for posterity.
Our responsibility at this time and in this place is to show future generations that the ordinary people of America do not want the dismantling of marriage. These policies were thrust upon us by the elites.
We hear demands for "marriage equality." But we never hear about equality for children. Why do some children have a legally recognized right to the care and support of both of their parents, and other children do not?
We hear about adults and their desires to have children. Why don’t we ever hear about children and their desires to have their own biological parents?
We hear that children will be fine with any combination of adults, so long as they love each other and love the child.
But isn’t this just an updated version of the old lies we were told about divorce? "Children will be fine as long as their parents are happy. After all, kids are resilient."
By separating sex from procreation and separating both from marriage, by claiming that men and women are completely interchangeable, the ideology of the sexual revolution has brought misery to millions of people.
"Gay marriage" really means removing the gender requirement from marriage. This will not be a single, stand-alone policy change. In other states, including California, the next moves have included:
• Replacing the words "husband and wife" with the gender-neutral "partner" or "spouse" in the law.
• Replacing "mother" and "father" with generic "parent" in the law.
• Changing birth certificates to reflect the wishes and intentions of adults rather than the actual genetic heritage of the child.
• Children being assigned three legal parents.
We do not want the systematic redefinition of parenthood.
I am not optimistic about immediate success in any particular court or legislature. But I am optimistic about the long-run future of marriage.
There is no future without marriage.
We intend to stand for the family.
Will you stand with us?
Jennifer Roback Morse, Ph.D., is founder and president of the Ruth Institute. She was a speaker at the Stand for the Family conference Friday in Provo.
