Pastor sues Virginia amendment enshrining same-sex marriage

A pastor in Virginia filed a recent lawsuit against a proposed amendment to the state Constitution that would allow same-sex marriages. The Virginia Constitution contains a ban such marriages despite the Supreme Court ruling that allowed them across the United States. Ben Purves, a pastor at Occoquan Bible Church in Woodbridge, said the proper procedures were not followed to put this constitutional amendment before voters. If voters affirm the amendment on the Nov. 3 election, it would open the door to greater threats to religious freedom, Purves said in a statement Monday.

The amendment, one of three included on the ballot, would alter Virginia’s Constitution to say that two adults may marry regardless of sex or gender. While same-sex marriage was made legal under the U.S. Supreme Court's 2015 Obergefell v. Hodges ruling, the state’s constitution still has a ban against it. Lawmaker Kirk McPike, the delegate to the state House who pushed for the proposed amendment, said it would ensure no couple ever questions the legality of their marriage. McPike is in a same-sex marriage.

What does the lawsuit say? Filed Thursday in a county circuit court, the lawsuit argued that the state’s house clerk and local clerks failed to properly post copies of the proposed amendment ahead of the House of Delegates' vote on it last year. Copies of the proposition weren’t properly made available for public inspection, the lawsuit said.

Something as significant as amending the state Constitution should be done the right way under the law, said Josh Hetzler, the executive director of Founding Freedoms Law Center. The legal organization filed the suit on behalf of Purves. The lawsuit was not set to go before a judge before the Nov. 3 election.

Has anyone else spoken out against the amendment? More than 400 pastors have signed onto a letter that Purves authored against both the marriage amendment and an amendment proposed to enshrine the ability to get an abortion. Catholics in the state have taken similar measures.