Evangelical leaders will reunite for a third “Battle for Marriage” simulcast rally on Sept. 19 at First Baptist Church in Springdale, Ark., in order to mobilize an expected crowd of thousands to support traditional marriage as the House of Representatives prepares to vote on the Marriage Protection Amendment during the week of Sept. 20.
The rally will be simulcasted from 7 p.m. – 9 p.m. EST to other rallies in San Diego, Ca., and Washington, D.C. and registered churches.
Dr. James Dobson, founder and chairman of Colorado-based Focus on the Family will be a featured speaker at the rally along with the host church’s pastor, the Rev. Ronnie Floyd. New and familiar faces to the “Battle for Marriage” rallies will also speak in support of traditional marriage, including Shirley Dobson, President of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission Dr. Richard Land, Family and Research Council President Tony Perkins, and President of the National Evangelical Association Ted Haggard.
WeVoteValues.com, a grassroots movement furthering Christian values, is sponsoring the event, which will be available for viewing via Sky Angel Satellite or Webcast.
A constitutional amendment defining marriage to be between a man and a woman stalled in the Senate earlier this year.
The constitutionality of same-sex “marriages” continues to be at the center of debate as voting season approaches. In Feb. nearly 4,000 marriage licenses were issued by the city of San Francisco to same-sex couples but were later declared void by the California Supreme Court in August, upholding a California law banning same-sex “marriages.” In May, Massachusetts’ high court legalized the issuance of marriage licenses to same-sex couples.
Several states have passed initiatives placing an amendment protecting traditional marriage on voter ballots. While Missouri overwhelmingly passed the measure, several states have experienced setbacks in seeing the measure make it to the ballots.
