The ruling today does nothing to change the way I interact with my soldiers. I counsel soldiers with a variety of behaviors I decidedly disagree with, from the sexually promiscuous to the homosexual. And they are not the enemy. As a faithful pastor and friend has often explained, "There are those saved by grace and those who need to be saved by grace." We are united in a common depravity and I seek, by God's grace, to unite more in a common confession and celebration of the grace of Jesus Christ toward sinners.
On a broader note, the culture wars are over. I will still steadily argue for my point of view and vigorously oppose any attempt to chill free speech on this matter (as a matter of religious conscience and civil principle). That said, the demographic writing is on the wall. And the demographic changes are merely a reflection of a broader philosophical trend toward linguistic relativism, historicism, and irrationalism. Words have meaning, and those meanings help norm society and maintain civil discourse.
That said, the reality is that words have lost meaning in our society. Tradition and logic are casualties of an innate wave of American progressivism that has swept over all people, regardless of party, ideology, or religious preference. Whenever we belittle traditions or define truth and make appeals based on our experiences, we allow ourselves to be swept up in this wave.
The culture war is over and good riddance. Any hope of a renewed culture lies in the rich soil of a revitalized church. And a revitalized church is rooted in a Word that norms all other beliefs and calls them to account. I will never sound a retreat from civic participation and even activism, but simply hope that a dark day for civil society will carry in its wings a new day for the church of Jesus Christ.
