Even as they rally against gay marriage at the national Southern Baptist Convention, Georgia pastors are instituting church policies at home that they hope will legally defend their refusal to perform same-sex weddings.
Officials say these policies and formal statements of faith can convince a court that the church acted out of documented religious convictions in refusing the marriage, rather than improper motives such as discrimination.
On Wednesday, SBC officials issued a statement saying they will not abide by any mandated change in the definition of marriage, an institution they believe is limited to a man and a woman. The statement, which is not binding on churches, arrives days before a U.S. Supreme Court ruling on the constitutionality of same-sex marriage, which many court-watchers suspect will favor such unions.
“We will not accept, nor adhere to, any legal redefinition of marriage issued by any political or judicial body, including the United States Supreme Court,” said the statement signed by the 17 SBC presidents since 1980.
It emphasized, “We will not recognize same-sex ‘marriages,’ our churches will not host same-sex marriage ceremonies, and we will not perform such ceremonies.”
The issue of same-sex marriage has reverberated throughout the Baptist convention here, and SBC officials made it clear that churches must prepare for fast-approaching legal storms.
Under current law, no church can be forced to participate in activities that conflict with its religious teaching, meaning they can legally refuse to perform same-sex marriages.
Several pastors said they believe that even if the Supreme Court establishes the constitutionality of gay marriage, that will not threaten the church’s right to refuse to perform such ceremonies. But church officials worry that future challenges might try to change that, or threaten the institutions’ tax-exempt status.
Beyond that, they worry about threats to church-related hospitals, colleges and other institutions.
“If an accrediting body threatens a Christian college because of its biblical stands, that could possibly shut down the school,” said Rev. Bryant Wright, pastor at Johnson Ferry Baptist Church in East Cobb. “That’s one of many issues that we could be facing in the days ahead.”
Wright said his church adopted a policy defining marriage as a lifelong covenant between a man and a woman. The church’s legal adviser said the policy could help the institution fight a lawsuit, he said.
Wright joined past SBC presidents who signed the anti-gay marriage statement. After, he told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that the Scripture’s teaching on marriage is not negotiable, and that, if necessary, churches will break the law in order to follow their beliefs.
“It could come to that,” Wright said. “In that case, we would have to obey God’s law versus man’s law.”
Altamaha Baptist Church in Jesup has adopted similar resolutions and procedures for the same purpose, said the Rev. Jack Lee. The church also has a policy saying that anyone openly practicing a gay or lesbian lifestyle cannot be a member, he said.
“There’s pressure, and we have to address this,” Lee said. “As a policy, we would not allow a same-sex marriage or have a reception in the building. … (The policy) gives us some footing on legal protections.”
‘We’re not being prejudicial’
The Georgia Baptist Convention has issued a set of guidelines on drafting these policies.
“The gay community has been very aggressive in challenging the church,” said the Rev. Robert White, convention executive director. “We’re not being prejudicial. We don’t want to discriminate against the gay community. We just don’t want the gay community discriminating against the church.”
Tabernacle Baptist Church in Cartersville used that template to adopt new policies on marriage, said the Rev. Don Hattaway.
“If we have a couple who wants to be married, it’s always good to have a policy to show where we stand,” he said. “What they then choose to do is between them and God.”
The controversy over gay marriage stands as a great conflict of liberties. Gay and lesbian advocates see marriage as a civil right, but some religious leaders say their beliefs grant them the right to refuse to participate in such unions. Time and again during the convention, pastors stressed that their views do not emanate from hate or discrimination, but a respect for Bible teaching.
“I want to be clear (our church) has a love of all people and our doors are always open to anyone who sincerely comes to worship God,” said Lee of the church in Jesup.
The Supreme Court’s approval of gay marriage is not inevitable. The justices could rule that states have the right to decide the issue for themselves, which would mean that Georgia’s constitutional ban on same-sex marriage will stand.
Church-related institutions at risk?
During the two-day convention, SBC distributed a guide book for churches called Protecting Your Ministry. It pointed to instances in which Christian photographers, bakers and florists faced lawsuits, government fines and other problems after they refused to participate in same-sex ceremonies.
“A new concept — that ‘sexual liberty’ trumps religious freedom — has begun to impact churches, ministries and individual Christians across the nation,” said the manual by the conservative Christian nonprofit group Alliance Defending Freedom.
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