The Community Guardians Group
Honorable Senators of the State of Maryland:
The Senators are the most senior and powerful leaders of one of America’s most distinguished states. A bulwark of union in the face of secession in civil war times, the state of Maryland today is home to cutting-edge biotechnology and some of the nation’s leading centers for thought, policy and law.
A bill on the issue of marriage has come before the Honorable Senators. You have no doubt formed your own opinions of this bill.
But please give me one moment to offer a plea on behalf of the faces that you haven’t heard speaking before you on this issue. I serve as director for the Community Guardians Group, a grass-roots affiliation of voters who follow the spirit of eternal values in the public forum.
Advocates for this bill, and opponents, have told you with certainty why it’s clear that gay and lesbian relationships should be, or should not be, treated the same as heterosexual ones.
But there are many innocent people who are trapped in the middle of this debate. Let’s not forget the painful struggles of men and women of almost every background, age group, and ethnicity, the ones who find themselves confronting their sexual desires, and who are left wondering, is this the real me?
Voting for this law will not only change the definition of marriage. This law will close the door, and extinguish the hope, for any young people who may be struggling with their desires, to take control their destinies. There may be people today, as well, who are involved in same-sex relationships, who may be finding their hearts stirring them to turn their lives around, to bring their intimate relationships in line with their true mission and purpose in life.
Don’t force these innocent ones into a corner. Don't make them choose one side or the other. Don’t push these tender souls to defend the promptings of their confused desires as the final seal and lock on their identities forever.
The honorable Senators are entrusted with the authority to make laws that touch on nearly every aspect of a life in the state of Maryland, from conception and birth, to death and burial. The laws of marriage of the state of Maryland, however, touch upon the exclusive jurisdiction of a very ancient and powerful Ruler Whose knowledge and strength eclipses our own. The power to create human souls is in the hands of G-d Almighty alone.
The form of the human being is not a matter of random chance or social fabrication. The human species was formed by G-d Almighty to consist of two equally important, complementary aspects, male and female. Just as human beings cannot reinvent themselves, at will, to have one eye like a squid or six arms like an insect, so too, the form of the proper human relationship is that of man and woman alone.
Human souls come into this world only through the union of the sperm cell of a man and the egg cell of a woman. Even the most exotic experiments with family organization cannot escape this simple, basic fact. So too, the human soul was created by G-d Almighty in a manner that it is strengthened, magnified and perfected through engaging in proper relationships in the context of marriages that may naturally lead to the birth of children.
The obligation on every man and woman to channel his or her desires into married relationships that naturally beget children was given to the prophet Noah, the father of the entire human race, by G-d Almighty, to be binding on all his descendants forever. Noah himself personally taught this tradition to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the patriarchs of the Jewish people, each of whom studied in the ancient academies of learning headed by Noah’s son and great-great grandson. The authority over this body of ancient wisdom, as well as the Laws of Noah, were entrusted by G-d Almighty in the Torah that He gave to the Jewish people at Mount Sinai.
Not often does an issue of such great magnitude come before the Honorable Senators for decision. You've been given a rare and precious opportunity to acquire a piece of eternity. Your vote against this marriage bill will allow you act on behalf of G-d Almighty to strengthen a pillar of the world's creation. Please don't let this opportunity slip through your fingers.
Please vote no on this marriage bill, which stands to push the most tender hearts of the next generation to forfeit their true destinies and expend their noble potential in futility.
Thank you for your wise leadership and for providing kind help and protection to our communities. The Merciful Creator should give you success and joy in the merit of your work to strengthen the influence and respect for His Torah.
Respectfully submitted,
Dovid Z. Schwartz
Director, Community Guardians Group
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