The 3 - July 24, 2022

This week's edition of The 3 includes developments concerning a bill in Congress, that has already passed the House, that would represent legislative agreement with the 2015 Supreme Court ruling on same-sex marriage. Another bill passing the House, under the guise of a bill providing for access to contraception, actually, according to opponents, favors Planned Parenthood and promotes abortion. And, an attempted ban on counseling to help people deal Bibically with unwanted same-sex attraction has survived a challenge on the federal appeals court level.

Gay marriage on the agenda in the U.S. Senate after House passage

This week, a series of votes, driven by leadership in the U.S. House of Representatives, were taken in response to comments by U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas that suggested that, following the Dobbs decision, other decisions could be on the table.

One of those votes had to do with same-sex marriage.  Since the high court at the time essentially created a right to so-called "same-sex marriage," the U.S. Congress has not taken action to curb same-sex marriage legislatively. 

CBN News reports that:

The U.S. House of Representatives approved the "Respect for Marriage Act" Tuesday which would enshrine same-sex marriage into federal law.

The purpose of the bill is to repeal the "Defense of Marriage Act" (DOMA) which was passed in 1996 to define marriage for federal purposes as the union of one man and one woman. DOMA also allowed states to refuse to recognize same-sex marriages approved by other states.

The U.S. Supreme Court previously declared DOMA to be unconstitutional.

Now that it has been suggested that Obergefell is on the legal chopping block, even though the Dobbs decision said otherwise, those in favor of same-sex marriage are trying to shore up that previous ruling with supporting legislation.  And, the House passed the bill - it now goes to the Senate, where it would require 60 votes to move forward.

It's not a foregone conclusion the Senate won't cobble together that vote total.  As of last Friday, Tony Perkins of Family Research Council, writing at The Washington Stand, said only nine senators had voiced opposition to the so-called "Respect for Marriage Act."  It appears there are 54 or 55 votes to advance the legislation, which would provide a firewall, an extra layer, of federal protection of gay marriage if Obergefell is revisited.

So-called "contraception" bill actually promotes abortion

And, hidden within another of those bills that passed the House, a bill purportedly designed to protect access to contraception, is a laundry list of protections for abortion, according to LifeNews.com, which reports that: Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America "has informed members of Congress that it is scoring a vote on the bill as a vote" for "abortion and abortion funding." SBA claims this “Right to Contraception Act," "...is better described as the Payouts for Planned Parenthood Act."

In a letter to members of Congress, SBA states: “Far from being a bill that simply allows for access to contraception, this bill seeks to bail out the abortion industry, trample conscience rights, and require uninhibited access to dangerous chemical abortion drugs.”  The Life News article says:

The letter points out that, although domestic family planning was federally funded at nearly $1.8 billion in FY 2020, this legislation:

• Seeks to guarantee funding to abortion businesses by barring federal and state governments from redirecting contraception funding to life-affirming health care providers.
• Would override state and federal freedom of conscience laws.
• Explicitly excludes application of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act.
• Could overturn laws regulating chemical abortion and mandate access to dangerous abortion drugs, due to its overbroad definition of contraceptives.

Good news for counselors who help people to overcome same-sex attraction

Even though a recent executive order has attempted to crack down on so-called "gender transition therapy," which has become a negative term, but includes the ability of Christian counselors to talk - talk - counselees through their unwanted same-sex attraction, in an attempt to lessen its impact.  When Canada implemented a ban on this type of counseling, pastors across the country, including here in America, spoke out against it. 

And, a counseling ministry in Florida has won a victory over those trying to ban Bible-based counseling to help someone to overcome same-sex attraction. Liberty Counsel reported on its website that a three-judge panel of the U.S Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit had issued a ruling in 2020 that "struck down laws in 2020 that ban counselors from providing minor clients and their families with any counsel to reduce or overcome unwanted same-sex attractions, behaviors, or gender confusion."

Palm Beach County and the City of Boca Raton had requested an "en banc" hearing of the complete court, but that was denied.  The three-judge panel had written:

“The perspective enforced by these local policies is extremely popular in many communities. And the speech barred by these ordinances is rejected by many as wrong, and even dangerous. But the First Amendment applies even to—especially to—speech that is widely unpopular…The panel opinion thoroughly explains why a fair-minded and neutral application of longstanding First Amendment law dooms the ordinances.”

Mat Staver, Founder and Chairman of Liberty Counsel, who is heard on Freedom's Call on Faith Radio, described the denial as "a huge victory for counselors and their clients to choose the counsel of their choice and be free of political censorship from government ideologues." He went on to say: "...Under the laws that were struck down, a counselor could encourage a client to take life-altering hormone drugs or even undergo invasive surgery to remove healthy body parts but could not help a client who seeks to overcome unwanted same-sex attractions, behavior, or confusion. Clients have the right to self-determination. They have the right to select a counselor. Counselors are like a GPS helping the client to reach the desired objective. Yet, these counseling bans injected a government mandated ideology to override the counselor and the client. These laws clearly violate the First Amendment.”