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Why do you support the FMA?

We must be allowed to define marriage in the Constitution via the amendment process. That is the only way to prevent activist judges from redefining it for all of us, as they have done in Massachusetts.

What is your strategy for passing the FMA in Congress and the state legislatures?

We must put as much pressure as we can on Congress to do the right thing. When the amendment gets to the states, it will likely be ratified quickly. People understand the dangerous implications of this experiment.

Why don't you support stronger language that would ban civil unions?

There is no backbone on Capitol Hill for a stronger amendment. We will have to defeat civil unions individually, at the state level.

You have said that failure to pass the FMA could lead to the destruction of the American family. How so?

A mother and a father form the bedrock of the nuclear family. This has been true in every culture, throughout history, since the beginning of time. No society in human history has ever defined marriage as anything other than between men and women.

Some conservatives say the FMA has little chance of passage. What's your reading?

We have no choice but to try. It will be a tough fight in Congress, but marriage and the family deserve our best defense.

You have said that if the American family fails, Focus on the Family would have no real purpose. Would you close up shop?

The family is created and ordained by God. It will never fail, but it can suffer great harm as a result of man's efforts to redefine it. Love for God and for our neighbor demands that we protect people from this harm.

How many years are you willing to devote to this cause?

As many as it takes.

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July 2004, Vol. 48, No. 7