US Supreme Court erred in legalising gay marriage

There is no doubt that the ruling by the US Supreme Court on the legalisation of gay marriages across the country, was a most historic step in the wrong direction. Leading the majority opinion, Justice Anthony Kennedy made one of the most powerful statements ever made about marriage and the family. “No union is more profound than marriage, for it embodies the highest ideals of love, fidelity, devotion, sacrifice and family. In forming a marital union, two people become something greater than once they were,” wrote the learned Justice.

It is amazing how such high level minds could construct such profound and pithy reasoning and then plummet into the most absurd conclusion — whose net effect is to destroy the very institution they purport to defend. It can only be considered tragic that with words that seem to have been drawn straight from a biblical wedding liturgy, Justice Kennedy and his four colleagues have succeeded in taking their nation back 4,000 years, to the razed cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, and midwifed the birth of a new Sodom. Whether the new nation will meet the same fate as the original Sodom, only time will tell. But one thing is sure — these three men and two women have cracked the solid foundation upon which their nation was founded and heartlessly tipped it into a moral abyss.

What is even more sad is that, the man in whose hand God has placed the destiny of hundreds of millions of Americans, was jubilating as if to celebrate a true rebirth. Just a few days prior to the ruling, President Barack Obama is reported to have hosted a Gay Pride day at the White House to celebrate accomplishments on this front. And thus he told the LGBT community there gathered, “A lot of what we’ve accomplished over these last six and a half years has been because of you.” His further pride was that whereas there had been only two states permitting gay marriage when he became President, under his watch the figure had grown to 37. Perhaps unbeknown to him, only a few days later, the dream was to be complete — the whole nation was covered!

The implications of the court ruling are profound in many ways. Most importantly, it has totally redefined the meaning of marriage and family. While some of its ramifications will not be evident for some time to come, there are many practical questions that touch on the liberties of others that will need to be clarified. For example, will religious leaders and institutions be required by law to officiate gay marriages or host gay couples against their religious convictions? A previous comment by Chai Feldblum, a commissioner on the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), is chillingly instructive. Ms Feldblum confidently quipped, “There can be a conflict between religious liberty and sexual liberty, but in almost all cases the sexual liberty should win.”

But, why should we lose sleep over a court ruling in a nation thousands of miles away? The Swahili put it well, “Ukiona mwenzako anyolewa, chako ukitie maji” (If you see your colleague being shaven, you better be prepared). The USA has generally set the pace on the LGBT agenda across the world. We can therefore expect a wave to sweep across the nations that have often stood against the practice.

As Kenyans, we should therefore be ready for some heightened activism especially prior to and after the homecoming of the son of the soil. Local court cases are likely to escalate to build on “previous gains”. Concerted campaigns are likely to increase in order to enhance visibility of gays and their demand for recognition. Watch out for “hate speech” laws being enhanced and enforced for alleged homophobic utterances. Religious groups, and especially the Church, are likely to be targeted for alleged homophobic and discriminative behaviour.

But, two things must be pointed out. First, we are not and have never been at the mercy of gay activists. As Franklin Graham, son to Billy Graham, has put it, “With all due respect to the court, it did not define marriage, and therefore is not entitled to re-define it.” Indeed, that responsibility lies with the God of all creation, whose supremacy we acknowledge in the Preamble of the Kenya constitution. Any legislation that dishonors God can thus be legitimately deemed unconstitutional.

Secondly, we must at all times distinguish between homosexuals and homosexuality. Homosexuals are human persons created in God’s image, and are worthy of every love and support to deal with their weakness. God loves every lesbian, gay, bi-sexual, and transgender person. As God’s people, it is incumbent upon us to render the same love. Homosexuality, however, is sin that must not be propagated, tolerated, and least of all, legislated.

This we must firmly resist.