On Tuesday, 10 February, Alabama Governor Robert Bentley (R) was quoted by the Associated Press as saying he did not want the current situation regarding same-sex “marriage” to turn into another “Selma” and that he wants the problem solved through the “proper legal channels.” “I don’t want Alabama to be seen as it was 50 years ago when a federal law was defied. I’m not going to do that,” Bentley said. “I’m trying to move this state forward.”
To be fair to Governor Bentley, I called his Press Office this morning to confirm the quote. After an hour or so, I received a call confirming that these indeed were Bentley’s words and sympathies.
I was very disappointed, to say the least. During the first few days after the federal judge in Mobile ruled that Alabama’s Defense of Marriage Amendment was unconstitutional, some of our elected officials, from Governor Bentley and Chief Justice Roy Moore down to the county Probate Judges issued defiant orders and statements against what many of them said was a ruling that contradicts both constitutional law and God’s commandments. Many people, both in Alabama and elsewhere, cheered them on.
But, predictably, this little war is ending with a whimper. While I am convinced that an overwhelming percentage of Alabama’s citizens stand against the State’s forced recognition of same-sex unions, they have no idea how to effective oppose the feds without the leadership of our civil (and ecclesiastical) magistrates. And it seems always that our officials let us down by their desired to “move forward.”
Why is that? Why does Governor Bentley fear Alabama being seen as it was a half century ago? I dare say Alabama was a more wholesome and Christian place in 1965 than it is in 2015. But you know the real reasons, don’t you? In 1965, Alabama was in the midst of the civil rights revolution, a virulently anti-Southern and anti-Christian movement run largely by South-hating Jews, atheists, and other assorted communists and socialists. And unfortunately, these same people controlled (and still control) the news media, Hollywood, and popular culture in general. They pressured Alabama then and they pressure Alabama now. Governor Bentley, who is very concerned about bringing jobs into Alabama, is saying, in effect, that he will kowtow to these forces in order to avoid the usual epithets (“racist,” “homophobe,” “redneck,” etc.) that might sully the State’s image. But sully its image in whose eyes? Certainly he doesn’t seem to be concerned about the eyes of God, nor for that matter His statutes, laws, and commandments. Nor does he seem concerned about the beliefs of us traditional Alabamians.
You see, Governor Bentley is fearing man instead of God. And, yes, he may succeed in avoiding those horrible epithets, and businesses may continue to locate in Alabama and bring jobs. But let’s not fool ourselves by calling Alabama a Bible Belt State any longer. Yes, the majority of her citizens are still Christians (at least nominally). But her leaders–the lesser magistrates who should be leading us–have bowed the knee to Mammon and Moloch.
The lesson we ought to learn, but will not, is this: Once you submit to the demands of your enemies and thereby acknowledge their moral superiority, you will be their puppet forevermore. It’s time someone cut the strings and freed Alabama and the South from the puppet masters. However, it doesn’t look like our current crop of elected officials have the fortitude to wield the knife.
Michael Hill