DALLAS − The Southern Baptist Convention passed a resolution supporting a concerted effort to reverse Obergefell v. Hodges as the historic U.S. Supreme Court decision legalizing same-sex marriage approaches its 10-year anniversary.
The June 10 vote by the nation’s largest Protestant denomination represents a doubling down on issues of gender and sexuality as the predominant group of evangelical Christians continues to move sharply to the right and signals the SBC’s hopes of replicating the successful campaign to overturn Roe v. Wade.
Whether the latest vote will move the needle on gay marriage, a right backed by a strong majority of Americans, remains to be seen. Last year, the SBC passed a resolution condemning the use of in-vitro fertilization, only to see President Donald Trump sign an executive order earlier this year seeking to protect IVF access and reduce its out-of-pocket and health plan costs.
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Reversing the Obergefell ruling is one of numerous issues related to sex, gender and marriage encompassed by the resolution. Among other things, the resolution affirms that there are only two genders, defines marriage as between a man and a woman, says families are designed for procreation and that human life is sacred “from conception to natural death.”
