Pro-family groups were encouraged this week by the announcement that the U.S. Census Bureau will not include same-sex “marriages” in its upcoming 2010 census report.
“The U.S. Census Bureau procedures used to count and tabulate relationship data are guided by and comply with legal requirements of the Defense of Marriage Act of 1996, which requires all federal agencies to recognize only opposite-sex marriages for the purposes of administering federal programs,” explained Census Bureau spokesman Stephen Buckner in a statement.
“Many of these programs rely on Census Bureau statistics,” he said. According to Census Bureau officials, any respondents who mark off persons of the same gender as “husband” or “wife” on the new census form will be automatically classified as an “unmarried partner.”
Currently, the Census Bureau considers as a family “two or more people related by birth, adoption or marriage.”
Jennifer Kerns, a communications director for ProtectMarriage.com, which is behind the ballot initiative to restore traditional marriage in California, was thrilled to see a federal institution backing the sanctity of marriage.
“The way that the federal government looks at it is the way that the law says it should be in California,” she said in a statement.
Jenny Tyree of Focus on the Family Action also lauded the recent development as a victory for common sense.
“The word 'marriage' has long been understood across many cultures as the cooperative union of male and female with a vital interest in the next generation,” she said in a statement.
“Thankfully, President Clinton signed the federal Defense of Marriage Act and gave the Census Bureau a clear guideline,” she concluded.
As the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census, the U.S. Census Bureau is mandated with fulfilling these obligations: the collecting of statistics about the nation, its people, and economy.
In addition to conducting a full population count every 10 years and making population estimates and projections between censuses, the Census Bureau also conducts surveys on behalf of various Federal Government and local government agencies on topics such as employment, crime, health, consumer expenditures, and housing.
Comments
hlerwin,
"Well put, wbmoore, and I agree wholeheartedly. The place where you and I start to disagree is over the fact that the Dalai Lama went through this same process - with identical results. "
Thanks. I realize you did not want me to answer, but I felt I must. I agree that people of no faith and any faith can go through a process of personal renewal. But I disagree that the results are identical. The results might appear similar in the here and now, but are drastically different in the eternal.
The difference between just anyone doing this and a Christian doing it is the object of faith.
If God sent Jesus, and Jesus said He is the only way to be with God, then He's right. In which case, if someone puts his faith in himself, or other people, or something he want to call god and thinks this will help him in the eternal, then that person is mistaken.
If Christ was mistaken, then God is not who He said in the Bible He is.
But even if Christ was not sent by God, then it still boils down to what is the object of your faith, in who/what do you believe.
Not all religions can be right. Truth is truth - not what you or I or anyone wants it to be. The sun exists right now in space or it does not. It can not be both.
The same is true of God. Either there is one or not. If there is a god, then either He is the God of the Bible or not. It is because of the exclusive claims of Christ that we have decide definitely whether to believe and follow Christ or not.
If Christ was wrong, then we are free to think and act as we wish in this life. But if Christ was right, and Christ IS from God, and He IS the only way to be with God, then we have to do what He said to do.
Thus, if Christ was right, personal renewal (called spiritual growth by Christians) for a Christian provides benefit in this physical life, as well as in the afterlife. But there would be no such spiritual benefit in the afterlife for the non-believer, even if there might appear to be similiarities in the physical (they would not be identical, since the personal renewal for a Christian also helps one grow spiritually in relation to God).
If Christ was wrong, and there is no spiritual life, then the effects of anyone working for personal renewal can be the same in this life.
If Christ was wrong, but there IS an afterlife, then while the effect of personal renewal might be similiar in the physical realm, only those who follow whatever god needs to be followed will have benefit in the afterlife, and will have benefit from spiritual growth toward the god.
Well put, wbmoore, and I agree wholeheartedly. The place where you and I start to disagree is over the fact that the Dalai Lama went through this same process - with identical results. (As I stated, we will disagree on this, so there's no need to answer by telling me that, yes, the Dalai Lama did that, but he is following a false god. I respect your ideas, but I don't need a reply.)
I've been thinking about grace and obedience and growth. I think the key is: upon regeneration by the Holy Spirit, there needs to be change towards God. The Holy Spirit then begins to convict us and generate a desire to obey God, in at least one area. If we are truly saved, as we mature in the faith (through prayer, reading the Bible, fasting, discipleship, sitting under teachers, encouragement of brothers, stepping out in faith, God speaking to us in what ever way we perceive), we will move towards a state of increasing love for God and obedience to the word of God. Many of us will have times of uncertainty, times of disobedience, but will be convicted by the Holy Spirit and confess our sins (agree with God), and move forward in our maturity.
James Reynolds,
Thanks, I feel the same about you all.
"I believe we need to treat people with love, but not necessarily kid gloves"
The Bible says to speak the truth in love. As our pastors point out in sermons from time to time...we either speak the truth or we think it's unloving to. This is called being 'passive/aggressive'.
The Bible calls us to be full of grace (which is assertive). I think all too often too many Christians are full of something else.... After all, if everyone who claimed the name of Christ actually loved God and mankind as He did...who could argue with our faith?
"Why is it so hard for people to understand they are not showing grace by beating people over the head with the Bible and Christianity?"
I think its where God has them - for some it is where they are in the growth continuum. For others it is calling.
I believe we need to treat people with love, but not necessarily kid gloves.
God has brought me to a place where, as I've said, we need to use scripture, and tie it in with real life. I don't think I was alway where I am in this. I think at one time, Scripture was sufficient. At another time, real life was the over riding feature of what I had to say. I think its more balanced to do both.
But then, I'm a teacher, not a prophet. I CAN be used as a prophet. I CAN be used as an evangelist. I CAN be used to exhort others. But my main calling is to teach. This is not the case for everyone.
DP, believer, wbmoore, prophet, and rollin4him, mike2685
I would like to thank each one for your opinions for I see Christ in each one of you at different points in your life and it helps me to continue my santification. God bless you all, and I look forward to more relevant conversations with each of you
"we see legalism instead of grace."
You don't have to go much further than how posters like Mike and some others are treated here to see your point loud and clear. Why is it so hard for people to understand they are not showing grace by beating people over the head with the Bible and Christianity?
The problem has been called 'easy believism' or 'Lordship of Christ', depending on the emphasis in question.
I have seen many 'Christians' fall into the category that basically states, "I have made a profession of faith what more do I need?" (sometimes the checklist includes baptism, and sometimes church attendence. But for those people who fall into this category, rarely is obedience to God through obeying what the Bible states included in their checklist - and when it is, we see legalism instead of grace.
Daniel Paul, how true it is that is why I have led out in our community to unite the churches to begin a resource center that helps provide food to the needy. We also help find people jobs, help them learn to budget, assist with meds and many other things.
The church in general has yeilded our responsibility over to the goverment and allowed it to usurp is mission. We need to do better as the church in feeding their stomachs and feeding their souls.
"It just doesn't make sense to say, 'I'm a Christian' and then not believe the Lord's very words."
Simple...that seems to be the example from the majority of Christians today. After all, if we actually believed every word of the Lord, we would not have welfare in this country because we would be loving our neighbor as ourselves. There is little room to question true Christian love.
There's a quote...I don't know who said it. 'We have enough religion to hate but not enough religion to love.'
bigtex, hard to say, but maybe he'll give us an answer.
believer, that is interesting. I wonder if he experienced that same change thru a relationship with Jesus or if Christianity is just another "religion."
bigtex, thanks and it doesn't make sense to me either. I think for some its about going to heaven and not going to hell, so they say a prayer, get baptized, join a church and then live their life anyway they choose. They fail to see that salvation is about a relationship with God and unfortunately for them I believe many of them are still not saved. But what's interesting about hlerwin is that he does not believe in the afterlife and when I asked him why he became a Christian he simply says because of the change he saw in his wife when she became a Christian.
believer, i know you are right but why would one want to be a Christian and be a disciple of Christ and then not want to follow Him. A disciple is to follow Christ even when he leads into unknown territory. It just doesn't make sense to say, "I'm a Christian" and then not believe the Lord's very words.
It is just unfortunate that some Christians are willing to compromise the faith and adopt the pluralistic philosophy of the inclusivism.
Keep up the good work believer.