Dear Editor,

The Neo-Dems continued their attack on our society, our institutions, and our families today with the signing of the ludicrously named “Respect for Marriage Act”. Just what is “marriage”?? Well, after today it means anything the government says it means. During the Clinton years marriage was defined by the government as the union of a man and a woman. Today’s signing dissolved that bill and replaced it with – for the “purposes of federal law” – “marriage as between a man and a woman and spouse as a person of the opposite sex”. So, millennia of “marriage” meaning the union of a man and a woman” changes, with the feeble stroke of President Biden’s hand – with appropriate transgender and crossdressers in attendance.

We are “promised” that this new federal definition will not find its way into our churches – uh-huh – sure Joe. That said, you can just imagine lines of attorneys with their pockets itching for new revenues when small businesses that have taken a pass on serving the gay community due to their religious beliefs take a stand in the face of this new federal definition. After all – IT’S THE LAW!!!

I’ve always been clear on the whole concept of marriage. I was raised Lutheran, converted to the Catholic church and in both, it’s defined as a Sacrament – with a Capital S. A man and a woman stand before God, their church, and their family and take a vow to love, honor and cherish each other all the days of their lives. If I tally the years of marriage between couples in our family lines there are hundreds of years of marriage . . . hundreds. My wife and I contributed 50 of those years to date. Do I believe a same-sex couple can marry?? No. Period. And the government’s intrusion into the Sacramental life of religious people will not change that.

Frankly, the government has no place in defining marriage, to begin with. Throughout history, government intrusion was simply for control of the populace. To make sure people marry the “right” color, the “right” race, the “right” cast. It’s always been about control and power. And since the joining of a man and woman is the cornerstone of the creation of a population – governments simply love to control this aspect of society.

Had it truly been about simply providing legal protection for same-sex couples – a simple “Civil Union” could have been defined. But that was not the intent – the elimination of marriage being the “union of a man and woman” was, and it has been replaced by a “union of man and woman and spouse”. The destruction of the Marriage Sacrament will follow as surely as the sunrise.

I hear all the words about the protection of the ideals of the church, about states being able to set their own definitions – yet they must recognize out-of-state marriages of same-sex couples. Bottom line, this is an attempt to undermine the very fabric of the family.

I am confident that same-sex couples love each other. I believe they certainly deserve the legal protection of a “civil union”. Heck, I’d be willing to tear up our state-issued “marriage license” and replace it with a “civil union” contract. I was not married by the state, I was married in our church, before God and family. And this is where the line should be drawn. Today, the “line” was moved and will find its way all the way to the alters of churches throughout the country.

And I must ask – can’t a man love more than one woman? Or a woman love more than one man? I suspect it will not take too many years before the “marriage” of multiple people will be on the agenda as well – it’s just fair, right?

The left and the Neo-Dems gained ground today against a foundational institution of our nation – marriage. It’s a sad day for the family and our nation.

William Keller