Top Stories of 2003: High Court Strikes Down Texas Sodomy Law

by Sherrie Black, Allie Martin, and Jody Brown
December 24, 2003

(AgapePress) - In his letter to the Romans, the apostle Paul says men whose "foolish hearts were darkened" exchanged the truth of God for a lie. His warning about man's wisdom has apparently gone unheeded in Washington, D.C., where the U.S. Supreme Court has struck down an anti-sodomy law in Texas -- effectively telling states they can no longer punish homosexual couples for engaging in activities the Bible says are "unnatural" and sinful.

In its 6-3 ruling in Lawrence v. Texas, the justices said the law was an unconstitutional violation of privacy. It is a reversal of course for the nation's highest court, which ruled 17 years ago that states could punish homosexuals for what such laws usually referred to as "deviant sex."

The case stems from a case brought by two men who were caught engaging in what was then an illegal sex act in Texas. Writing for the majority, Justice Anthony Kennedy said those men "are entitled to respect for their private lives," adding that the state "cannot demean their existence or control their destiny by making their private sexual conduct a crime."

But Justice Antonin Scalia, who took the unusual step of reading his dissent from the bench, said "the court has largely signed on to the so-called homosexual agenda" and "has taken sides in the culture war."

Joining Kennedy in the majority were Justices John Paul Stevens, David Souter, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer, and Sandra Day O'Connor. Chief Justice William Rehnquist and Justice Clarence Thomas joined Scalia in dissent.

Morality v. Immorality
"Increasingly, the Supreme Court is less about true law and more about policy and politics."

That is the opinion of Steve Crampton, chief counsel for the American Family Association's Center for Law & Policy, which filed a brief in support of the State of Texas on behalf of numerous pro-family organizations.

"Today's decision represents yet another instance of the Court not merely declaring the law, but actually making it," says Crampton, who had argued that issues of morality are under the authority of states, not the federal courts.

"Under our constitutional republic, it is the place of the state legislature, acting through its duly elected representatives, to decide what is moral," he says. "For a handful of un-elected judges to impose their views of morality is not law, it is tyranny."

Appearing on CNN, Rob Schenck of the National Clergy Council says today's decision means the courts no longer recognize immoral behavior.

"The fact is that homosexual behavior is immoral -- it is wrong," Schenck says. "And what the court has said today is that right and wrong -- morality versus immorality -- no longer matters in the law. That is wrong. It undermines our concept of justice and it demoralizes our culture."

The director of research for the American Family Association says the ruling opens the door for legal acceptance of same-sex marriages. Calling the ruling "demoralizing, but not unexpected," Ed Vitagliano says homosexual activists will now push for legalization of same-sex marriage.

"[The justice system] seems to be moving toward a view that homosexuality cannot be treated any differently than heterosexuality, which has broad implications regarding marriage, for example," he says.

"If you cannot view homosexuality as immoral or even as different from traditional heterosexual relationships, then the ground has been laid to legalize same-sex marriage -- because there would no longer be any grounds to keep marriage between one man and one woman."

Vitagliano says concerned Christians need to encourage Congress to pass a Federal Marriage Amendment, which would give recognition only to marriages between a man and a woman. [See Related Website]

Time to Wake Up?
A Florida attorney believes the decision handed down will awaken Americans who want to preserve traditional marriage. Mat Staver, president of Liberty Counsel, says the decision will galvanize the majority of Americans who want to preserve family values but who have ignored the radical agenda of homosexual activists.

"This particular decision essentially is a shot over the bow and a wake-up call that I believe will galvanize the sleeping giant of the majority of Americans who believe in traditional family values and traditional marriage so that every American will get involved in this cultural war," Staver says.

"If we don't, in the next decade or two, we could lose traditional family values and marriage in this country."

Staver also says the decision underscores the importance of the next Supreme Court appointment.