In a recent op-ed for The Washington Post, Senators Susan Collins (R-ME) and Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) advocated for the so-called Respect for Marriage Act (RMA), a bill that would cement same-sex marriage in federal law. RMA has already passed the House with bipartisan support and could receive its final vote in the Senate as soon as Monday. Despite the high-sounding language of “respect,” in fact this bill would threaten the religious freedom of millions across the country.
Today’s RMA legislation is a response to Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas’s comments on whether the landmark Obergefell case would be overturned in the wake of Dobbs v. Jackson. While that remains very unlikely, those who support same-sex marriage are worried - worried enough to take reckless actions that could irreversibly harm religious freedom.
Supreme Court Justice Alito pointed out in his dissent on Obergefell (a landmark same-sex marriage case) that policies like RMA would “vilify Americans who are unwilling to assent to the new orthodoxy.” Certainly, we cannot allow a bill that will persecute and demonize those who maintain deep religious convictions.
The Respect for Marriage Act aims at repealing the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which was signed into law by President Bill Clinton in 1996. In effect, DOMA blocked same-sex couples from receiving marriage benefits from federal and state governments. Throughout its lifespan, DOMA has been mostly nullified by Supreme Court cases such as Windsor and Obergefell. Today, activists bent on eradicating biblical sexual morès from law want to completely repeal DOMA and codify same-sex marriage in federal law.
Religious freedom is on the line. While supporters of this bill might argue otherwise, the so-called Respect for Marriage Act will become a weapon used against those with deeply-held beliefs in favor of traditional marriage. Many Americans could find themselves in a similar position to Jack Phillips, the heroic cake baker from Colorado who has been sued multiple times for breaking a “non-discrimination” ordinance for only baking cakes for traditional marriage ceremonies.
As Justice Alito wrote in his Obergefell dissent “I assume that those who cling to old beliefs will be able to whisper their thoughts in the recesses of their homes, but if they repeat those views in public, they will risk being labeled as bigots and treated as such by governments, employers, and schools.” Here as so often, Justice Alito is right. There’s a volume of evidence—such as the persecution of Jack Phillips and Baronelle Stutzman—that points to this fact. The so-called Respect for Marriage Act will not protect religious freedom.
While many Republicans voted in favor of this bill in the U.S. House, including Minnesota’s Rep. Tom Emmer, true conservatives should understand what the RMA is capable of. A bill that threatens the religious freedom of Americans with sincere religious beliefs does not belong in the United States. People of faith across the country are worried – and they have reason to be. Minnesota Family Council and other organizations continue to sound the alarm on this bill. Yet as Christians, we know that this perversion of God’s design will not flourish. As Psalm 28:5 states, “because they do not regard the works of the Lord nor the deeds of His hands, He will tear them down and not build them up.” What a beautiful assurance it is to be on the only side that matters—God’s side.
