Meeks Passing Protect Marriage Petitions
Confirmation has come today that the Rev. and State Senator James Meeks is allowing petitions to put an advisory referendum on the preservation of marriage at his Salem Baptist Church.
With this potentially high profile endorsement of the strongly worded question, Meeks heightens his potential for receiving conservative Christian support outside of his natural base.
Meeks joins Catholic and evangelical Christian churches throughout Illinois in the effort to place the advisory referendum on the ballot this fall. 
Concurrently, a campaign-like post card from the Family Taxpayers Network is arriving in potential petition passers mailboxes urging the return of petitions.
Meeks’ church seats 9,000 and services are at 10 AM.
Those who want to help are asked by the Illinois Family Institute to meet at Salem's House of Hope at 9 AM Sunday. The address is 752 E. 114th Street in Chicago (right off the Bishop Ford Expressway).
Petitions may be downloaded here.
McHenry County Blog posting more on the progress of the petition passing April 19th and more on the Gay Games Regatta.
23 comments:
"Gay marriage—who the hell cares? If you're gay you're gay—more power to you. What you want is to be treated fairly by the law and any American who doesn't think that should be the case is, frankly, un-American." -- Paul Hackett
I ask again, at what point will Meeks' mixing his politics and his preaching result in his church losing tax exempt status?
But is Meeks passing a petition to put him and his slate on the ballot yet? And who is on that slate?
When Rev Bobby Rush loses his tax exempt status.
I support same-sex marriages, not the civil union emphemism.
But I don't think marriage is a right for anyone. If you try and make it a right, through Judical fiat; which is what this amendment stuff is a reaction too. Then I'd rather see it but to a vote.
This is an example where Gay activists picked the wrong issue.
They should have instead picked don't ask don't tell and been at the forefront of defending ROTC's on every campus and saying by the way, we want to join, and we want to not suffer the affront of don't ask don't tell as we serve.
That would have been my advice on strategy. I think it would have brought them more support.
I guess Sen./Rev. Meeks can forget about getting big campaign contributions from those hot-shot divorce attorneys who would love to add the revenue from divorces of same-sex marriages to their bank accounts.
Pure unbridled bigotry. Apparently Mr. Meeks (I certainly don't think he is deserving of any reverence) has forgotten the lessons of the civil rights movement. Time to consign the execrable Meeks to the same dustbin of history as right-wing freak show Jim Oberweis.
At least Meeks has won a competitive election, which you can't say about Obie, who I hope gets accidentally castrated.
This ends any hope Jesse Jr. had at being Mayor of the City of Chicago.
Garcia on Blagojevich's anti discrimination commission doesn't have any problems with Sister Muhammed.
And her spiritual leader Rev Farrahkan's statement on gay pride parade in Jeruslem makes the folks behind this petition look darn friendly.
"And the Christian right, with your blindness to that wicked state of Israel…can that be the holy land, and you have gay parades, and want to permit to have a gay parade in Jerusalem when no prophet ever sanctioned that behavior. HOW CAN THAT BE THE ISRAEL, how can that be Jerusalem with secular people running the holy land when it should be the holy people running the holy land. That land is gonna be cleansed with BLOOD!"
Meeks isn't planning on washing anything with blood...
Rev./Sen. Meeks is just an opportunist. He should do some research on Coretta Scott King's work in helping to prevent discrimination towards homosexuals.
What a colossal waste of time and money it is gathering signatures for a proposed amendment sure to go down in defeat in Blue Illinois.
Rev Rush's issue should be dealt with by campaign finance regulations. While it is an issue I am more concerned with churches being used to stump for candidates, regardless of party.
Unless Meeks has a plan for making everyone forget that he was the chief proponent of HB750, I don’t think he’ll really get a significant amount of the conservative votes.
That would be my hang-up.
That's the tax swap for education that would be a whopping tax increase too?
I think most people what get hung up a lot quicker then on anything else.
The need something like 250,000 signatures by May 8th. They have no chance.
So much hate, so little time... CONservatives make me sick when they pull this kind of junk.
Hello?!?! What are you people trying to protect marriage -from-?
Massachusetts has had gay marriage for over a year and guess what -- the divorce rate among married people is the SAME!
Why anyone would want to prevent two people who are in love and committed to spending the rest of their lives together from doing so is beyond this American.
You kooky conservatives ought to get a life and stopping hating your fellow Americans.
Why anyone would want to prevent two people who are in love and committed to spending the rest of their lives together from doing so is beyond this American.
If they're brother and sister? cousins? If one or both under age? We used to reguire a VD test too.
The state has an interest in licensing marriage.
I accept the conservative case for same-sex marriage and I think I would make divorce a lot tougher.
But I don't think it's a fundamental right by a long shot.
Meeks could win.
This amendment would win in Illinois. Everywhere this amendment was voted on the pro-family side won including more liberal states like California and Oregon.
Gay marriage is a loser issue for Democrats. It probably cost Kerry Ohio.
Bill-
If they're brother and sister? cousins? If one or both under age? We used to reguire a VD test too.
Genetic aberration and consent. Is that the best conservatives can come up with for prevention? A gay couple has no chance of reproducing, let alone producing a genetically aberrant child and, if both are of age and without mental impairment there is legal consent. There should be no rational argument against it.
Driving is not a 'fundamental right' either yet people would be up in arms if conservatives chose to ban say (looking in the stereotype handbook) women from driving. It isn't a fundamental right but if you give it to one group of people then every group capable of it better have that right too.
Making divorce tougher will just mean that less people get married and instead live together informally. I don't see how that helps anything. Let adults decide whether or not they think their marriage should continue or not.
Gish -
A gay couple has no chance of reproducing, let alone producing a genetically aberrant child
Just to be clear, if said brother and sister were sterile and of age before the marriage you'd have no problem with them tying the knot?
Anon-
Sorry, I forgot I posted on this topic.
Ultimately, no I can't have any problem with them getting married.
In this state, first cousins are allowed to do just that if they are past the age of reproduction.
I might think it is weird or different but I'd stand up for their rights to do just that. Who am I to say that there should be any reason not to.
As a return question, should you check back, do you have any reason they shouldn't be allowed?
Assuming they are sterile and of age, I can't think of a logical reason at this point to prevent it. It's been allowed historically.
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