The second referendum proposed on the ballot for the Nov. 3 election would amend the Virginia Constitution to include same-sex marriage.
The current Virginia Constitution states “That only a union between one man and one woman may be a marriage valid in or recognized by this Commonwealth and its political subdivisions.” The amendment would reviseVirginia’s constitutional law by replacing “man” and “woman” with “two adult persons.”
Department Chair for Government at Liberty University Aaron Van Allen explained that changing the wording would mean that anyone who identifies under an LGBTQ+ would now be a protected status to the constitution.
“From a legal perspective, voters — particularly Christian voters — should understand exactly what the political left is attempting to accomplish,” Van Allen said.
According to Van Allen this is a new tactic to enshrine LGBTQ+ rights into law by amending the state constitution.
“Amending a state constitution is an extraordinarily difficult task — which is why the left has attempted to traverse this path because they know it will be difficult for the political right to amend the language in the future,” Van Allen said.
According to Van Allen California, Colorado, Hawaii and Ohio have attempted similar initiatives with varying success. In the states that successfully passed amendments, gay marriage is no longer defined as between two people of the same sex but includes transgender marriage.
“This is vitally important historical narrative which Christians should remember,” Van Allen said.
The Family Foundation Action, a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping and informing Virginia voters, believes that the separation of sex and gender could add transgender ideology into the state constitution. Thiscould affect parental rights, education and the protection of female sports.
“Your sex, as created by God, is represented through your chromosomal structure in which God has created you,” Van Allen said. “However, your gender, at least the way that this language would read under this amendment, would basically be your individual choice of how it is that you choose to identify.”
Van Allen called for student voters to be mindful of the intentional wording in the amendment and ballot question. He mentioned that all three of the clauses are significant.
“What we have to remember is that the commonwealth of Virginia years ago recognized and said, ‘listen, marriage is between one man and one woman, we are holding this very specific biblical standard, this biblical doctrine,’” Van Allen said.
According to Van Allen, the amendment, which permanently alters the definition of same-sex marriage in the Virginia Constitution, would retract from the original agreement and biblical standard of marriage. Van Allen also said the language in the amendment implies that the traditional, biblical definition of marriage does not support equality.
Liberty University encourages voters to oppose the proposed amendments as they conflict with biblical teachings from the book of Genesis.
Pastor, Professor of Evangelism and Pastoral Care Advisor to the Liberty Pastoral Counseling Center David Wheeler shared his insight on what a biblical marriage looks like.
“For us as Christians, it is primarily ordained by God, not so much by what the state says,” Wheeler said.
Since the Obergefell v. Hodges Supreme Court decision in 2015, same-sex marriage is legal across the United States, including Virginia. There is no ban on same-sex marriage, contrary to what the ballot questionimplies.
Instead, if passed, the amendment would safeguard Virginian policies if the Obergefell v. Hodges decision were to be overturned, similar to Roe v. Wade in 2022.
Former Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin signed a bill in March of 2024 that protects religious institutions from having to perform any marriage ceremony against their religious convictions. After Youngkin’s signature, it became a Virginia statutory law.
However, the Virginia Constitution retains superior authority over conflicting Virginia statutes. There are no protections for religious institutions specifically mentioned in the amendment.
Changes have been proposed regarding the brevity and lack of specific language in the amendment, which could leave churches and schools vulnerable to legal action.
“I shouldn’t have to be forced to contradict my Christian beliefs in order to practice what it looks like to be a pastor,” Wheeler said.
Wheeler shared his view on the marriage amendment from a pastoral standpoint. He encouraged constituents not to compromise their biblical worldview and explained that if this proposed amendment were passed, those in pastoral leadership positions could be expected to sanction a same-sex marriage.
“I think we as pastors have to be very careful that we don’t compromise those biblical beliefs,” Wheeler said. “I think at the same time, we need to hold the state of the government accountable for these things too … one nation under God, this is who we were created to be.”
Even those who do not hold to a biblical view of marriage are standing up against this amendment. Former republican candidate for lieutenant governor and WRVA Morning Show Host John Reid is openly gay and said he will be voting “no” on all three amendments, including the marriage amendment, because it will put the word “gender” into the state constitution.
According to Reid, the amendment is not about gay marriage, but rather an attempt to include the transgender agenda into the Constitution.
In addition, Reid said that while he does not agree with the stance many Christian churches and pastors take about same-sex marriage, the amendment would remove the rights of private and religious institutions.
Senes is a news editor for The Liberty Champion.