And Another Massive Marriage Win

The Australian Senate has just voted on homosexual marriage with another big defeat handed to the militants. With a clear two-thirds rejecting the bill, this is another slap in the face to the activists and their political hangers-on. The bill was defeated 41 to 26.

So for two days in a row the attempts to destroy marriage in Australia have been defeated, and defeated soundly. Yet we were being told all along that both votes were going to be cliff-hangers, with only the smallest of margins. But both were massive wins.

Here is how it all panned out in the end:
HR     98 no 42 yes
Sen    41 no 26 yes
Total 139 no 68 yes

That is a huge win indeed. And we must thank those brave Senators who stood up for marriage. I have already written about one such Senator who has had to pay a very heavy price indeed for standing strong and speaking truth: https://billmuehlenberg.com/2012/09/19/in-defence-of-cory-bernardi/

Senator Bernardi has been treated appallingly by the MSM (of course), but also by many in his own party. Yet his speech was first rate. So let me here offer large slabs of it, since the MSM will never allow his actual words in context to see the light of day:

“I have been and always will be a strong supporter of traditional marriage and its current definition, being a union between a man and a woman. Marriage is accorded a special place in our society because it is a union that is orientated towards having children, thereby ensuring the continuation of our population and civilisation. Society benefits from marriage, so marriage is accorded benefits by society. At the base level marriage is concerned about what is best for society, rather than being concerned about the so-called rights of the individual. Changing the definition of marriage would indeed change the focus of the institution itself. It would put the focus on the desire of adults, as opposed to having the focus on the production and nurturing of an environment for the raising of children for the benefit of society.

“I know that not every marriage has children but marriage is a foundation for the family unit upon which our society is built. It has proven itself as the most sustainable and effective social support and training environment for our future generations. I recall columnist Miranda Devine quoted a UK Family Court judge in 2010 in which he noted that family breakdown is the cause of most social ills and that, despite its faults, marriage should be restored as the gold standard and social stigma should be reapplied to those who destroy family life.

“The Australian Institute of Family Studies has found that children of married couples benefit from marriage because they have higher levels of social, emotional and educational development in comparison with children who do not live in that traditional environment. Married mothers are more likely to be employed or hold a university degree and married-couple families are less likely to come up against financial problems. While the authors of the research were keen to stress that this is because of a family’s financial situation and the educational qualifications of the mother, it does give me cause to wonder: doesn’t marriage itself help to provide financial stability and better outcomes? That seems to be a case for opening marriage up to any environment and to any union of two people, as Senator Cameron said, who happen to love each other, but in a family environment it is children who should be the primary concern and children benefit from having both a male and a female role model living in a house—two people that love each other in a permanent union.

“We have all seen the sad effects of marriage breakdown and the adverse impacts it can have on children. We have to also acknowledge that today families do not always come as the gold standard where mum and dad do live together under the one roof of a house and love each other and provide that nurturing environment. I have always said that a child is better in any environment where it is loved and that is irrespective of the circumstances, but it will not stop me from advocating that traditional marriage is the absolutely best environment for the rearing of the next generation. So whatever the forms that families take in this modern day and age—and they do come in so many different forms with some people being individual parents and indeed same-sex couples also raising children and they all do an amazing job in the circumstances—as I said, I will not stop focusing on the importance of promoting and encouraging the traditional family. But simply because marriage is important that does not mean that we should redefine it. We should not open it up to all comers, because I think it would actually devalue the institution.

“The move for same-sex marriage is just another step in what I consider an attack on our enduring and important institutions, particularly the social ones. It is another tear in the fabric of our social mores. The proponents of same-sex marriage, and I do not mean to generalise but this is about many of the proponents of same-sex marriage, ask for one step and they think that is all they want or they say that is all they want and they will be satisfied when this has been achieved—’Just this one thing; give us that and that will be okay and all inequality will be diminished and everyone will be equal and it will be fair’. But the harsh reality is that there will never be equality in society and there are always going to be people who feel that they have got a raw deal or have been discriminated against or do not have the same access to opportunities or advantages as others do, and to pretend any differently is really to deny reality. But history demonstrates that once those who advocate for radical social change, which I consider this to be, achieve it in any way, shape or form, there is then another demand and another demand and another demand and they slowly chip away at the very foundation of what provides our social support, stability and cultural mores and we are left with a replacement that is somehow vastly inferior to the wisdom of successive generations.”

Democratic Labor Party Senator John Madigan also gave a great speech on this. Here in part is what he said: “Under the guise of compassion for the desire of same-sex couples, we have endured a non-stop campaign of denigration against those who have refused to buckle under the weight of an attack designed to pour scorn and guilt on those who have the temerity to refuse to deny their principles….

“Nowhere in the Marriage Act is the word love even mentioned. The reason the state is involved in marriage is because it is a partnership with social consequences. Marriage is less about the rights of the adult than about the rights and responsibilities those adults have towards the children of the relationship.”

Other Senators could be singled out here as well. But thanks to the efforts of many of these men and women, we have had a mighty victory here. For the time being at least marriage is safe in Australia. The fight of course will go on, as the militants will not stop until they obtain their goal of destroying marriage and family altogether. Thus we cannot rest here. We must remain vigilant.

But we can celebrate this great win. They do not come along too often, so savour the moment while it is here. And once again, many thanks to all of you who contributed to this amazing victory. Thanks for all your prayers, all your hard work, and all your concern. It has all paid off big time here. Glory to God.

http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/political-news/senate-rejects-gay-marriage-bill-20120920-268kz.html
http://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/search/display/display.w3p;db=CHAMBER;id=chamber%2Fhansards%2Fd1b86af2-b8ee-4367-ad53-c5359a072920%2F0198;query=Id%3A%22chamber%2Fhansards%2Fd1b86af2-b8ee-4367-ad53-c5359a072920%2F0000%22

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15 Replies to “And Another Massive Marriage Win”

  1. Dear Bill, I understand there are another 3 bills about same sex marriage in the pipeline. I am wondering why the Greens and some ALP Parliamentarians are wasting their time on this issue. They just want their objectives, whether or not Australia needs their objectives.
    Regards, Franklin Wood

  2. Opposing same sex marriages and civil unions is all good and true. However biblical Christians need to go further in my opinion to advocate for the following; firstly stripping legal benefits (including social security benefits) from “de-facto” couples and secondly, restricting divorce only to cases of spousal abuse and infidelity.
    Tristan Jones

  3. It’s nice to be optimistic but let’s face it – they’re just going to keep on going till they win and they’ll do that in a sinful world. The only hope is prayer.
    John Graham

  4. Thanks John

    Yes they certainly will keep at it – and so should we. Moreover, it was a lot of prayer and a lot of hard work that resulted in this massive win, and we just need to keep up with more of both in the future.

    While we don’t want to be unduly optimistic, neither do we want to be unduly pessimistic. God, and his people praying much and working much can make a real difference, as we learn from 2000 years of Christian history.

    Bill Muehlenberg, CultureWatch

  5. Thank you Bill, I do agree with what you say here. But what I mean is that we seem to be constantly on the defensive. Why can’t we see headlines like “NSW bans abortion” or “Queensland outlaws homosexual actions”? Even in states with conservative parliaments nothing positive happens. Maybe Tony Abbott can make a difference but I guess time will tell.
    John Graham

  6. Who’s this chick at Collins St Baptist on the 7:30 Report who thinks that she knows the Bible? Someone needs to teach her not to make up her own theology. Methinks she believes she is more loving than God Himself.
    Rebecca Field

  7. Thanks Rebecca

    Yes I saw that hatchet job by our taxpayer-funded ABC. And yes this gal is another wolf in sheep’s’ clothing. Seem to be plenty of them out there.

    Bill Muehlenberg, CultureWatch

  8. Great news, Bill. A victory at last in this never ending war.
    It’s surprising the number of Labor MP’s who voted against the Bill in the House of Reps. At least 30 turned against their own party line, including high profile Ministers Gillard, Swann, Bowen, Burke, McClelland, the Chief Whip, plus Kevin Rudd and Ray Emerson.
    If they continue like this, we won’t know which party to vote for!
    We have to watch Lib Senators like Sue Boyce who voted with Labor, and replace her at the next Senate election.
    Des Connors,Qld

  9. These results are due to Prayer and Action by many people and thanks to Bill for his amazing articles that have kept us up to date during this long battle.

    Unfortunately the battle is not over and this is one war we must win for the sake of future generations of Australia, for freedom of speech and freedom of conscience.

    Madge Fahy

  10. Hello Bill,

    While we may be thankful for the outcome, yet I do not share your enthusiasm. I do not see any mention of God and His Word. So long as we argue from historical and “scientific” perspecitves, without God, we have lost our sure and solid foundation. Such arguments do nothing for God’s glory and honour and does nothing for the eternal well being of our neighbour.

    Greetings,

    Philip den Boer

  11. Thanks Philip

    But I am a bit puzzled by your remarks. Just what exactly are you suggesting here?

    If a Christian helps an old lady across the street, but with perhaps no “mention of God and His Word,” was that a wasted effort and to be criticised?
    If a Christian helps protect a woman from a group of savage rapists, but with perhaps no “mention of God and His Word,” was that a wasted effort and to be criticised?
    If a Christian rescues a toddler about to be hit by an oncoming car, but with perhaps no “mention of God and His Word,” was that a wasted effort and to be criticised?

    If you think no action is ever praise-worthy or something which brings glory to God, without always throwing John 3:16 into it, then we are on different pages here.

    Indeed, to save God’s institution of marriage from destruction by the militants, whether or not God and his word are always mentioned, seems like something which greatly glorifies and honours God.
    To have Christian politicians like Wilberforce rescue millions of blacks made in the image of God from the ungodly slave trade, whether or not God and his word are always mentioned, seems like something which greatly glorifies and honours God.
    For Christians to be salt and light as Jesus commanded us to be, and work for righteousness which exalts a nation, whether or not God and his word are always mentioned, seems like something which greatly glorifies and honours God.

    You seem to be rather unaware of a basic biblical teaching, namely, God’s common grace (Matt 5:45, eg).

    So I will praise God for this terrific win, and give him all the praise and glory. If you want to just complain about it, and criticise the efforts of so many Christians who worked and prayed so hard about this, that is up to you. But thanks for sharing your thoughts.

    Bill Muehlenberg, CultureWatch

  12. On Philip’s point, I agree with Bill that it is important not to confine our arguments to the fact that man/wife marriage, and no other, was ordained by God. The fact that atheists and agnostics (such as the Prime minister) can see that nature and history both show that same-sex marriage is a nonsense means that we have to be thankful for that common ground. Our views are greatly reinforced by knowing that we are on God’s side, so to speak, but in order to make our case convincing to thoughtful though worldly people we have to be prepared to use non-theological arguments and be thankful if and when they agree with us.
    David Morrison

  13. Yes, it was a wonderful outcome, glory to God!
    However, here in Tasmania we are still waiting for the Upper House vote (25th, I think)
    The State Gov’t here is determined to go it alone, urged on by the gay mafia and their godfather (Rodney Croome)
    We have a few staunch defenders of traditional marriage (eg Michael Ferguson, who has been responding to support emails by providing contact details of parliamentarians, and urging people not to give up the fight – God bless him!)
    My local member, Brian Wightman, fully supports same-sex marriage, yet claims he is a Christian! Another wolf, I guess.
    I emailed him to express my concern about his claim, but as yet have had no reply.
    Bill, many thanks for your informative articles keeping us up to date. I go to your website now before I read my emails.
    Keep up the outstanding work, and God bless you!
    Jan Greig

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