Pastors Urge Apology From Senator For Remarks Regarding Marriage Amendment

(CNSNews.com) - A group of pastors from all denominations are calling on a Minnesota senator to apologize for remarks he made against Christians seeking to protect traditional marriage.

"We are grieved by your name-calling of those who hold to a traditional view of marriage and we believe you owe the people of Minnesota a public apology for your harsh and intemperate attacks on people seeking to uphold basic Christian beliefs," the pastors wrote in a letter to Sen. Mark Dayton (D-Minn.).

The pastors, who are from Lutheran, Catholic, Baptist and Assemblies of God churches were responding to a recent speech delivered by Dayton at the Rainbow Families Conference in Minneapolis, Minn.

During the speech, reported by the Star Tribune, Dayton said people who seek to protect traditional marriage through a constitutional amendment exhibit "only disgust and disdain while they spew hatred and inhumanity."

Dayton added that if a state marriage amendment were passed, "the forces of bigotry and hatred will have had their say."

"Jesus Christ didn't say, 'Love only thy opposite-sex neighbors,'" the Star Tribune quoted Dayton as saying. "Christ was silent on homosexuality even as he repeatedly condemned adultery and divorce." the senator said.

In response, the pastors wrote, "You also stated that Jesus was silent on homosexuality. Jesus was also silent on rape and incest but we are not to interpret the lack of recorded comments as approval of such behaviors. Both the Old and New Testaments condemned homosexual behavior and Christians are obligated to uphold the Scriptures' teaching.""

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