'Summer for Marriage' bus tour rolls into Trenton
July 29, 2019 at 12:37 p.m.
As state courts and legislatures around the country continue to debate the legality of allowing same-sex couples to wed, the National Organization for Marriage has taken to the nation’s highways to affirm the definition of marriage as a union of one man and one woman.
The non-profit, non-sectarian organization’s 2010 “Summer for Marriage” bus tour is making its way to major cities throughout the country, with speakers in each location taking a stand against the passage of laws that would redefine marriage. The colorful tour bus emblazoned with pro-marriage messages – which will visit 23 cities over a five-week period – paid a visit to the State House in Trenton July 20.
Click here to see more photos from the rally
In the fifth stop on its tour, the National Organization for Marriage hosted a rally on the front steps of the building where the New Jersey legislature voted down a proposed same-sex marriage bill in January. Speaking to the small but enthusiastic crowd gathered for the rally, Bishop John M. Smith articulated the position of the Catholic Church that marriage can only be defined as a lifelong union between husband and wife.
“No movement or ideology can erase from the human spirit the certainty that marriage exists solely between a man and a woman,” Bishop Smith said. “This great truth about marriage is not some obscure doctrinal fine point, but a fact of human nature recognized from all peoples of every faith and every culture.”
The bishop explained that the institution of marriage exists for the common good and that it is the backbone of both family and society. It is therefore crucial, he said, to defend marriage and the positive influence that it has on the community at large.
“My friends, we owe it to ourselves and to the future generations to support and promote and defend marriage,” Bishop Smith said.
While the Church stands in defense of marriage, Bishop Smith added, it also must support “all members of the human family,” including those who choose to remain single. But to defend the definition of marriage as exclusively between a man and a woman, he explained, does not “ignore the rights of the equal dignity of human persons.”
“There are many ways and reasons to protect human rights,” Bishop Smith said. “Sacrificing marriage is certainly not one of them.”
Although the belief that marriage exists solely between a man and a woman is a fundamental teaching of the Catholic Church, the “Summer for Marriage” tour promotes marriage not as a religious issue, but a societal concern. Brian Brown, president of the National Organization for Marriage, told those in attendance that regardless of their faith background they should be proud to stand up for marriage and to make sure their voice is heard.
“On this tour, we’ve made clear that marriage is based in reason, in common sense, in natural law,” he said. “The reason we’re here today is to tell you that there are many, many more like you all across this great country. We stand united with people of different backgrounds, different faiths, different creeds to say that marriage is a beautiful thing. It is something we will never be ashamed of.”
Brown added that to date, proposed same-sex marriage laws have been defeated each time that they have been put in the hands of voters. In several states, most notably California, supporters of same-sex marriage have now taken the issue to the courts, which could threaten marriage laws nationwide, he said.
In New Jersey, Brown noted that the Catholic Church’s statewide petition drive last fall was a difference maker in the legislature’s vote on the marriage bill, which illustrates the importance of the public voice in defending marriage.
“When those petitions were handed in to the legislators, it helped change the entire dynamic of the fight,” Brown said. “Legislators understood that people did not want same-sex marriage.”
Brown also discussed the strong opposition to their efforts being put forth by proponents of same-sex couples’ right to marry. On the bus tour’s previous stop in Providence, R.I., July 18, Brown said their rally was disrupted by demonstrators who stormed the stage, stood directly in front of the podium and shouted at speakers. In Trenton, a simultaneous gathering was held at the State House in support of same-sex marriage, but the two events were able to coexist without disruption.
The “Summer for Marriage” tour, which began July 14, will continue to visit cities along the east coast from Maine to Florida and states as far west as Iowa, Minnesota and Missouri. The tour is slated to conclude in Washington, D.C., Aug. 15.
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As state courts and legislatures around the country continue to debate the legality of allowing same-sex couples to wed, the National Organization for Marriage has taken to the nation’s highways to affirm the definition of marriage as a union of one man and one woman.
The non-profit, non-sectarian organization’s 2010 “Summer for Marriage” bus tour is making its way to major cities throughout the country, with speakers in each location taking a stand against the passage of laws that would redefine marriage. The colorful tour bus emblazoned with pro-marriage messages – which will visit 23 cities over a five-week period – paid a visit to the State House in Trenton July 20.
Click here to see more photos from the rally
In the fifth stop on its tour, the National Organization for Marriage hosted a rally on the front steps of the building where the New Jersey legislature voted down a proposed same-sex marriage bill in January. Speaking to the small but enthusiastic crowd gathered for the rally, Bishop John M. Smith articulated the position of the Catholic Church that marriage can only be defined as a lifelong union between husband and wife.
“No movement or ideology can erase from the human spirit the certainty that marriage exists solely between a man and a woman,” Bishop Smith said. “This great truth about marriage is not some obscure doctrinal fine point, but a fact of human nature recognized from all peoples of every faith and every culture.”
The bishop explained that the institution of marriage exists for the common good and that it is the backbone of both family and society. It is therefore crucial, he said, to defend marriage and the positive influence that it has on the community at large.
“My friends, we owe it to ourselves and to the future generations to support and promote and defend marriage,” Bishop Smith said.
While the Church stands in defense of marriage, Bishop Smith added, it also must support “all members of the human family,” including those who choose to remain single. But to defend the definition of marriage as exclusively between a man and a woman, he explained, does not “ignore the rights of the equal dignity of human persons.”
“There are many ways and reasons to protect human rights,” Bishop Smith said. “Sacrificing marriage is certainly not one of them.”
Although the belief that marriage exists solely between a man and a woman is a fundamental teaching of the Catholic Church, the “Summer for Marriage” tour promotes marriage not as a religious issue, but a societal concern. Brian Brown, president of the National Organization for Marriage, told those in attendance that regardless of their faith background they should be proud to stand up for marriage and to make sure their voice is heard.
“On this tour, we’ve made clear that marriage is based in reason, in common sense, in natural law,” he said. “The reason we’re here today is to tell you that there are many, many more like you all across this great country. We stand united with people of different backgrounds, different faiths, different creeds to say that marriage is a beautiful thing. It is something we will never be ashamed of.”
Brown added that to date, proposed same-sex marriage laws have been defeated each time that they have been put in the hands of voters. In several states, most notably California, supporters of same-sex marriage have now taken the issue to the courts, which could threaten marriage laws nationwide, he said.
In New Jersey, Brown noted that the Catholic Church’s statewide petition drive last fall was a difference maker in the legislature’s vote on the marriage bill, which illustrates the importance of the public voice in defending marriage.
“When those petitions were handed in to the legislators, it helped change the entire dynamic of the fight,” Brown said. “Legislators understood that people did not want same-sex marriage.”
Brown also discussed the strong opposition to their efforts being put forth by proponents of same-sex couples’ right to marry. On the bus tour’s previous stop in Providence, R.I., July 18, Brown said their rally was disrupted by demonstrators who stormed the stage, stood directly in front of the podium and shouted at speakers. In Trenton, a simultaneous gathering was held at the State House in support of same-sex marriage, but the two events were able to coexist without disruption.
The “Summer for Marriage” tour, which began July 14, will continue to visit cities along the east coast from Maine to Florida and states as far west as Iowa, Minnesota and Missouri. The tour is slated to conclude in Washington, D.C., Aug. 15.
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