February 15th, 2014
It seems that those who oppose equality had reason to hope that Judge Arenda Wright Allen would rule in defense of Virginia’s constitutional prohibition of same-sex marriage. A profile in the Washington Post reveals her to be a very religious woman:
When Wright Allen testified about her career before the Senate Judiciary Committee, she brought her pastor from the 300-year-old First Presbyterian Church in Norfolk. Besides her husband, Delroy Anthony Allen, the prospective judge said the Rev. Jim Wood was “probably the closest man in my life.”
“I first have to thank God, because it’s clear to me that if it weren’t for him, I would not be here,” Wright Allen said then.
And the First Presbyterian Church in Norfolk is so staunchly opposed to equality that they’ve made it a tenet of their faith:
Regarding Issues Debated in the Church
In 2001, 2009 and again in 2011, the Session of First Presbyterian wrote and affirmed the following three tenets:
1. Jesus Christ is Lord God of all and the only way of salvation.
2. The Holy Scripture is God’s revealed Word, the only infallible rule for faith and life.
3. God’s people are called to holiness in all aspects of life. This includes honoring the sanctity of marriage between a man and a woman, the only relationship in which sexual activity is appropriate.
We require that judges separate their religious beliefs from civil law. Yet, as judges such as Antonin Scalia illustrate, the chasm between law and religious beliefs about law can sometimes be narrow. And within her ruling she honors the “faith-enriched heritage” of Virginia’s laws.
But Wright Allen rightly found the separation between religious beliefs about how society should be and the constitutional rights of those who disagree with her church’s position. Which makes Wright Allen’s forceful ruling the more powerful.
Latest Posts
Featured Reports
In this original BTB Investigation, we unveil the tragic story of Kirk Murphy, a four-year-old boy who was treated for “cross-gender disturbance” in 1970 by a young grad student by the name of George Rekers. This story is a stark reminder that there are severe and damaging consequences when therapists try to ensure that boys will be boys.
When we first reported on three American anti-gay activists traveling to Kampala for a three-day conference, we had no idea that it would be the first report of a long string of events leading to a proposal to institute the death penalty for LGBT people. But that is exactly what happened. In this report, we review our collection of more than 500 posts to tell the story of one nation’s embrace of hatred toward gay people. This report will be updated continuously as events continue to unfold. Check here for the latest updates.
In 2005, the Southern Poverty Law Center wrote that “[Paul] Cameron’s ‘science’ echoes Nazi Germany.” What the SPLC didn”t know was Cameron doesn’t just “echo” Nazi Germany. He quoted extensively from one of the Final Solution’s architects. This puts his fascination with quarantines, mandatory tattoos, and extermination being a “plausible idea” in a whole new and deeply disturbing light.
On February 10, I attended an all-day “Love Won Out” ex-gay conference in Phoenix, put on by Focus on the Family and Exodus International. In this series of reports, I talk about what I learned there: the people who go to these conferences, the things that they hear, and what this all means for them, their families and for the rest of us.
Prologue: Why I Went To “Love Won Out”
Part 1: What’s Love Got To Do With It?
Part 2: Parents Struggle With “No Exceptions”
Part 3: A Whole New Dialect
Part 4: It Depends On How The Meaning of the Word "Change" Changes
Part 5: A Candid Explanation For "Change"
At last, the truth can now be told.
Using the same research methods employed by most anti-gay political pressure groups, we examine the statistics and the case studies that dispel many of the myths about heterosexuality. Download your copy today!
And don‘t miss our companion report, How To Write An Anti-Gay Tract In Fifteen Easy Steps.
Anti-gay activists often charge that gay men and women pose a threat to children. In this report, we explore the supposed connection between homosexuality and child sexual abuse, the conclusions reached by the most knowledgeable professionals in the field, and how anti-gay activists continue to ignore their findings. This has tremendous consequences, not just for gay men and women, but more importantly for the safety of all our children.
Anti-gay activists often cite the “Dutch Study” to claim that gay unions last only about 1½ years and that the these men have an average of eight additional partners per year outside of their steady relationship. In this report, we will take you step by step into the study to see whether the claims are true.
Tony Perkins’ Family Research Council submitted an Amicus Brief to the Maryland Court of Appeals as that court prepared to consider the issue of gay marriage. We examine just one small section of that brief to reveal the junk science and fraudulent claims of the Family “Research” Council.
The FBI’s annual Hate Crime Statistics aren’t as complete as they ought to be, and their report for 2004 was no exception. In fact, their most recent report has quite a few glaring holes. Holes big enough for Daniel Fetty to fall through.
Mark F.
February 15th, 2014
As a Presbyterian, she also believes her opinion was predetermined by God, and must be God’s will.
Ben In Oakland
February 15th, 2014
Really? So free will is a myth? Wow! Who knew.
Dan
February 15th, 2014
Yep. The Puritans thought the same thing.
Paul Douglas
February 16th, 2014
I wouldn’t characterize the chasm between Scalia’s romanist religious beliefs about law and the law as narrow.
Nonexistent would be a better term.
(I could have called him Fat Tony, but I didn’t).
jerry
February 16th, 2014
I will be interested in learning how her particular church treats her over this ruling.
MattNYC
February 17th, 2014
I will call him Fat Tony. And frankly, I think he really wants to be Pope–not a “mere” SC Justice. But he obviously wasn’t committed enough to be celibate (guess a few hundred years ago, he might have been able to ignore that whole celibacy thing). So he does the next best thing, use his religion to make decisions (except when the death penalty and the poor are concerned).
Nathaniel
February 17th, 2014
Mark, I’m not sure that she would be wrong, considering the number of Judges appointed by Pres George “lets make a constitutional amendment against gays marrying” Bush that have been ruling in our favor. Now we have a Judge from a homophobic church supporting us. Either there is a great deal of coincidence, or there is a god with a great deal of humor making sure that otherwise irreproachable Judges are the ones that set his LGBT children free.
Sandhorse
February 17th, 2014
…likes Nathaniel’s comment.
Mark F.
February 18th, 2014
@Ben Yes, Presbyterians deny free will. They are Calvinists who believe God has predetermined who will go to heaven, and you can’t do anything to change it.
Chris McCoy
February 19th, 2014
Ben In Oakland said:
Free Will has long been a point of contention among religious doctrines. Calvinists believe that an all-knowing, all-powerful deity already knows which choices you’ll make (by definition).
Most New Atheists, such as Sam Harris don’t believe in Free Will either.
Buddhists, rejecting the idea of Agency required by Western Philosophy (ie, in order for there to be Free Will, there must be someone [the Agent] to make a choice), similarly reject Free Will.
Ben in Oakland
February 19th, 2014
I know. It all just goes to show that the ultimate answers to ultimate questions ultimately don’t matter.
Leave A Comment