WHEREAS all people are created in the image of God (Genesis 1:27);

WHEREAS the words, examples and life of Jesus the Christ, as reported in the Gospels, teach us how to live lives of inclusive love and abundant welcome for all of God’s children, especially those who have been legally, spiritually or by culture and tradition marginalized and oppressed in society (the story of "The Woman at the Well", (John 4:1-42);

WHEREAS we hold these truths to be self-evident, that all people are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness (The Declaration of Independence, 1776);

WHEREAS the Eleventh General Synod of the United Church of Christ in 1977 called for full civil rights for, and the full spiritual inclusion of, all people without regard to sexual orientation;

WHEREAS the Twenty-fifth General Synod of the United Church of Christ in 2005 recognized the importance of fidelity and integrity for all covenanted relationships;

WHEREAS the proposed “Marriage Protection Amendment”, which states:

          "Inasmuch as marriage is the legal union of only one man and one woman
          as husband and wife, no other legal union that is treated as marriage or
          the substantial equivalent thereof shall be valid or  recognized."

will appear on Florida’s ballot in November 2008 and, if passed, will write discrimination against law abiding Florida residents into Florida’s State Constitution;

WHEREAS the title “Marriage Protection Amendment” is inaccurate and misleading since no current or future marriage will be threatened or endangered by the civil recognition of loving and committed same-sex couples; just as no same-race marriage was threatened when mixed-race couples fought for and won the legal right to participate in civil marriage by way of the United States Supreme Court ruling on Loving vs. Virginia in 1969;

WHEREAS the so-called “Marriage Protection Amendment” is broadly worded so as to ensure that ALL forms of legal recognition for unmarried couples, whether gay or straight, could be subjected to constitutional challenges as they have been in other states that have passed similar amendments;

WHEREAS the proposed amendment, if approved, will lead to a loss of existing domestic-partner recognition and benefits for same-sex and opposite-sex unmarried couples (including elderly and retired couples) by governments and municipalities in Florida (including State Universities) that currently offer them; these include, but not limited to, the right to visit a partner in the hospital, to make important medical decisions when a partner dies or is incapacitated or to obtain healthcare insurance coverage from state agencies and municipalities that provide them to the domestic partners of their employees;

WHEREAS religious organizations and faith leaders cannot be required by law, or in any way pressured by the State, to perform ANY marriage that contradicts their religious beliefs and/or traditions, even when a couple is legally eligible to be wed (i.e. mixed faith couples, divorced individuals, etc.);

AND WHEREAS the Twenty-fifth General Synod of the United Church of Christ in 2005 urged congregations and individuals of the United Church of Christ to work against legislation, including constitutional amendments, which aim to deny equal marriage and partnership rights to couples based on the gender of the participants;

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Florida Conference of the United Church of Christ states its strong opposition to the so-called "Marriage Protection Amendment".

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Florida Conference of the United Church of Christ strongly supports any lawful and peaceful action aimed at keeping the so-called “Marriage Protection Amendment” from becoming enshrined into the Florida State Constitution, including endorsing and assisting the Fairness for All Families and Florida Red and Blue campaigns to defeat the amendment.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Florida Conference of the United Church of Christ encourages individual congregations within the conference to take an active role in opposing the amendment by educating Floridians about the nefarious goals and the negative consequences of passing this broad and discriminatory amendment.