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The Call to City Hall
Jeff Beacham

"Condemn Gay Nups - Clergy Thump Their Bibles Outside City Hall." So read the headline of one left-leaning New York newspaper, The Daily News. Sounding like it was composed before the event; it confirms the bias in the media. The truth is, our City Covenant Coalition* sponsored 'Defense of Marriage' Press Conference and Prayer Rally on the steps of New York City Hall was anything but what these headlines suggested.

LARGEST, MOST DIVERSE GATHERING WIDELY COVERED BY MEDIA
This was the largest and most diverse group of religious leaders to gather for a press conference at City Hall in living memory. There was an equal amount of Black, Hispanic, White, male and female clergy represented at the gathering. There were stories in the New York Daily News and the New York Sun. TV news included WCBS News, UPN 9 News and Channel 2. WCBS Radio, WINS Radio and WMCA/WWDJ also reached millions more in the tri-state area.

THE STATEMENT
After many hours of editing and consultation, we finally arrived at the following press statement read by Dr. Joseph Mattera, founder and director of CCC. "...City Covenant Coalition is a network of ministers brought together to positively impact our region. As the sponsor of this event, we have invited a diverse group of Metro New York area clergy, collectively representing thousands of congregations, because we are greatly concerned by recent attempts to redefine marriage.

We stand united to affirm the Biblical view of marriage, held since the beginning of civilization: that marriage is only between a man and a woman. Upholding this position is a crucial quality of life issue that will affect future generations to come. This sacred covenant should not be altered to satisfy special interest groups and promote the radical agenda of some public officials. Furthermore, we cannot affirm the recent same-sex marriage ceremonies performed by certain clergy whose actions contradict the historic tenets of their faith.

Rather than redefining marriage, our society needs to do all it can to strengthen the institution of traditional marriage and family as one of the foundational building blocks of all civilizations. We applaud all efforts to ensure that this traditional view of marriage is upheld and protected.

Jesus said "Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning made them male and female, and said, 'For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.' So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. (Matthew 19:4-6). In this passage, Jesus, reflecting on the words of Moses in the book of Genesis, reaffirmed the Biblical belief that marriage is between one man and one woman.

We urge all citizens, and public officials to honor these immortal words and not destroy what God Himself has instituted. We love, respect and encourage all people to visit our congregations, especially those with questions regarding marriage."

Following are some key excerpts from news articles in the Daily News and the New York Sun; March 30 2004:

"A coalition of ministers from congregations across the city gathered on the steps of City Hall yesterday in support of the biblical definition of marriage as a union between male and female. They sang hymns and recited prayers to open the press conference, where they spoke about marriage as a “sacred covenant” with specific guidelines set down by God."

"Organizers of the event said the clergy who attended represent thousands of churches across the New York region. Later in the day, hundreds more gathered for a prayer rally next to City Hall Park."

"This was the first public display for the [City Covenant] coalition, which was formed about four years ago, Rev. Mattera said.... The role of New Yorkers in the national debate on gay marriage is escalating as a number of city groups take action on both sides of the issue. The debate intensified a little more than a week ago, when three same-sex couples married on the steps of City Hall to protest criminal charges brought against upstate officials who issued marriage licenses to same-sex couples."

"The country as a whole is embroiled in a larger debate of whether to amend the Constitution to define marriage as an institution between a man and woman. Supporters of gay marriage call a prohibition of gay marriage a violation of their civil rights. But religious groups deny that same sex unions are about basic civil rights. 'This is not about segregation or race even. This is about a choice people make about their lifestyle,' said the Reverend Michael Faulkner of Central Baptist Church on the Upper West Side at the rally. 'You cannot even begin to put that on the same level with how a person is born and the racial discrimination that took place with African-Americans in this country."

ANARCHY AWAITS
CCC is currently in discussions with other key leaders from the greater New York area planning an event in the near future where we expect thousands of Christian couples to come together for a mass renewing of vows ceremony at a major city venue. We intend this to be a follow-on 'statement' after the impact created by our recent press conference and prayer rally. Traditional marriage is a foundational building block of any society. If this begins to crumble, anarchy awaits. Much is at stake, so please support us in prayer as we endeavor to stop the rot.

The Church of Metro New York is coming together, united in purpose, and speaking with a prophetic voice into our culture - at last! Stay tuned!

* City Covenant Coalition is a Coalition of "ascension gift" ministers and ministries that come together in covenant to transform cities and disciple the nations with the "Gospel of the Kingdom of God." I serve as the Chairman of the CCC Regional Leadership Council.

JEFF BEACHAM is the President and Founder of FIREPOWER MINISTRIES INTERNATIONAL, an evangelistic association founded in Australia at THE HILLSONG CHURCH in 1989 and based in America since April 1999. He is also the chairman of the advisory council for THE CITY COVENANT COALITION, a network of key ministries in NEW YORK CITY. As well as conducting an itinerant ministry, Jeff writes regularly for many Christian publications and publishes a monthly e-zine called "THE FMI REPORT" that goes out to 5000 people in 25 countries (subscribe FREE at: www.firepowerint.com).