It is another sad day in the USA. As many of you will have already heard by   
   now, and as many of us have been expecting for some time, liberal New York   
   Governor, Andrew Cuomo, has just signed a bill legalizing same-sex   
   "marriage" in that state. The bill -- which is similar to bills which failed   
   to pass in 2007 and 2009 due to Senate opposition -- was earlier approved by   
   the Democrat-led New York Assembly. With the Republican-controlled Senate   
   then approving the bill by a narrow vote of 33-29 after obtaining some legal   
   protections for churches and other religious organizations, it was just a   
   matter of Governor Cuomo signing the bill into law Friday evening. The New   
   York same-sex "marriage" law goes into effect in thirty days.   
      
   In reviewing some of the earlier remarks which I made concerning this issue   
   on our Endtime Prophecy Net Messageboard, I just discovered the following   
   comment which I made on December 3, 2009. Sadly, what I said then has turned   
   into reality:   
      
   "Well, this is certainly surprising -- but positive -- news. A lot of people   
   -- including myself -- expected that the state of New York would easily fall   
   to the gay and lesbian agenda. Apparently not so, at least for now. But I   
   don't think that the bill failed to pass due to moral issues. It simply   
   wasn't politically convenient for some of the state senators to support the   
   bill at this current time. When 2011 rolls around, it may be a completely   
   different story."   
      
   At that time, the New York senate shot down the bill by a vote of 38-24.   
   This time, not even two years later, this revised bill passed by a vote of   
   33-29. Thus, New York -- along with Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont,   
   Connecticut, Iowa and Washington, D.C -- becomes the sixth state where gays   
   and lesbians can legally enter into a "marriage" relationship.   
      
   It would have been the eighth state, except for the fact that after being in   
   effect for five months during 2008, California's same-sex "marriage" law was   
   overturned by California voters through a public referendum known as   
   Proposition 8, which constitutionally established a union between a man and   
   a woman as the only legally-recognized form of marriage in that state. The   
   validity of Proposition 8 may eventually be determined by the U.S. Supreme   
   Court. In November of 2009, voters in the state of Maine also shot down a   
   same-sex "marriage" bill through a statewide referendum. In all, thirty-nine   
   states currently have similar laws in effect.   
      
   Obviously, seeing the handwriting on the wall, as well as an opportunity to   
   win additional points with the gay and lesbian community before the upcoming   
   2012 presidential election, President Barack Obama encouraged New York   
   lawmakers to support gay rights during a fundraiser that was held in New   
   York City with the gay and lesbian community.   
      
   Many God-fearing, Bible-believing Christians will no doubt find this latest   
   development in New York very troubling, as they should. If you don't quite   
   understand why the passage of this particular bill is even more troublesome,   
   allow me to point out a few things to you.   
      
   There are several factors which make Governor Cuomo's "victory" unique. For   
   one thing, New York is a huge state, with the third largest population in   
   the American union. In fact, New York's population of over nineteen million   
   citizens is more than the combined population of the other states where   
   same-sex "marriage" is currently permitted. As various news agencies are now   
   reporting, this means that in effect, the number of same-sex couples who   
   currently reside in states where same-sex "marriage" is legal has more than   
   doubled overnight with Governor Cuomo's signing of this bill.   
      
   This fact alone will no doubt inspire, motivate and radicalize many other   
   same-sex "marriage" advocates across the nation who may have become   
   discouraged by defeats in New York in 2007, in California in 2008, in Main   
   and New York in 2009, in New Jersey in 2010, and in Maryland and Rhode   
   Island this year. Let me remind you again -- as I did in a comment on our   
   Endtime Prophecy Net Messageboard in April of 2009 shortly after the gay and   
   lesbian "victory" in the state of Iowa -- that gay and lesbian militants   
   have every intention of winning over every New England state by the end of   
   next year -- 2012. So again, this "victory" in New York will no doubt   
   strengthen their cause and rekindle their flame.   
      
   Another big difference between New York and the other five states and   
   Washington, D.C., is that the state of New York has no residency   
   requirements for obtaining a marriage license. In other words, it is my   
   understanding that the same-sex "marriage" bill which was just signed by   
   Governor Cuomo will allow gay and lesbian couples from other states to go to   
   New York, and immediately obtain a "marriage" license. It isn't difficult to   
   imagine thousands of gay and lesbian couples flocking to New York in the   
   coming months in order to get "married".   
      
   This leads me to another point. While this is being painted as an equal   
   rights issue by liberal New York politicians and a few left-leaning   
   Republicans, my personal suspicion is that this development has more to do   
   with New York's current financial woes, and a way to bring a lot of new cash   
   into the state in a quick manner. Just think of how many agencies and   
   businesses will profit from a huge influx of gays and lesbians to New York   
   who want to get "married" while the legal door remains open -- hotels,   
   restaurants, clothing stores, jewelry shops, flower shops, photography   
   studios, tour agencies and sight-seeing spots, etc. It will be a financial   
   bonanza.   
      
   What also makes the New York same-sex "marriage" law unique is the fact that   
   it is only the third state -- besides New Hampshire and Vermont -- where the   
   gay and lesbian community has achieved their objective through legislative   
   means, and not through a cowardly, roundabout court order, as occurred in   
   Iowa, for example. This fact endows the bill with more power, influence and   
   legal weight.   
      
   Furthermore, I would dare say that whereas the 2004 Massachusetts bill has   
   been the primary legal model up until now, I suspect that the New York bill   
   will become the new model, which liberals in other states will now follow;   
   because by examining the exact wording of this bill, they will have learned   
   how to overcome -- through legal means -- some of the primary objections and   
   concerns which are expressed by more conservative, God-fearing Americans.   
      
   Whether or not the New York law will endure remains to be seen. While New   
   York Governor Andrew Cuomo, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and their   
   liberal ilk have obtained a "victory" for now, as occurred in Maine and   
   California, it may be short-lived. According to everything that I have read   
   concerning the people of the state of New York, outside of New York City   
   itself, they are quite conservative, and a legal challenge, and possibly a   
   future referendum, may already be in the works.   
      
   On the other hand, Cornell Law School professor, Michael Dorf, holds the   
   view that it is "inevitable that we'll have same-sex marriage in most of the   
   states within a decade." While I truly hope that Professor Dorf is wrong in   
   his assessment, if we consider the increasingly liberal views which are   
   embraced by the younger generation -- despite the conservative views which   
   are held by their parents -- it is a serious cause for concern.   
      
   In fact, as I point out in a number of my articles, I have long suspected   
   that in a moral sense, the USA has already passed the point of no return. An   
   honest examination of the mass media, the public education system, the   
   entertainment industry and other areas of American public life will quickly   
   reveal that the USA is moving full steam ahead in its carnal liberality, and   
   soon won't be much different from hedonistic Rome of two thousand years ago,   
   which engaged in every form of sexual perversion and sin. Concerning that   
   misguided society, the Apostle Paul wrote the following:   
      
   "Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither   
   were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish   
   heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, And   
   changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to   
   corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.   
   Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their   
   own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves: Who changed   
   the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more   
   than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen. For this cause God gave   
   them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural   
   use into that which is against nature: And likewise also the men, leaving   
   the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men   
   with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that   
   recompence of their error which was meet. And even as they did not like to   
   retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do   
   those things which are not convenient; Being filled with all   
   unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full   
   of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers, Backbiters, haters   
   of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient   
   to parents, Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural   
   affection, implacable, unmerciful: Who knowing the judgment of God, that   
   they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but   
   have pleasure in them that do them."   
   Romans 1:21-32, KJV   
      
   While I could say a lot concerning the previous verses, I will refrain from   
   doing so at length, being as I already discuss this issue in detail in such   
   series as "The Gay And Lesbian Agenda: To The Point" and "When Sin Is No   
   Longer A Sin".   
      
   Let me just call your attention to one sentence from the previous verses.   
   Paul writes "Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such   
   things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them   
   that do them". That sentence alone demonstrates the perversity, obstinacy   
   and hardheartedness of the ancient Romans. In other words, the Romans knew   
   that what they were doing was wrong. Perhaps, like many people today, they   
   were even aware of the terrible fate which befell the ancient cities of   
   Sodom and Gomorrah, as a result of their perverse sexual sins against God.   
   Yet, despite that fact, they plunged headlong into hedonism, and even took   
   pleasure in their sins and rebellion against God.   
      
   The United States of America today is very much the same. Not only do many   
   people engage in all of these sexual perversions, and flaunt their sinful   
   lifestyle publicly, but in their strong delusion, they even have churches   
   where they claim that God accepts or at least overlooks and tolerates these   
   blatant sins, and loves them just as they are. This, in my view, is even   
   worse than the legalization of same-sex "marriage". It is slapping God in   
   the face.   
      
   Should we then expect a different fate from Sodom and Gomorrah if we   
   willfully choose to engage in and legalize these very same sins?   
      
   I think not.   
      
   God's judgments grind exceedingly slow, but exceedingly fine.   
      
      
      
   Jeff Snyder, SysOp - Armageddon BBS  Visit us at endtimeprophecy.org port 23   
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