NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A day after electing their first African-American president, Southern Baptists passed a resolution opposing the idea that same-sex marriage is a civil rights issue. Thousands of delegates at the denomination's annual meeting in New Orleans on Wednesday were nearly unanimous. It affirms Southern Baptist belief that marriage is "the exclusive union of one man and one woman" and that "all sexual behavior outside of marriage is sinful." It acknowledges that gays and lesbians sometimes experience "unique struggles" but declares that they lack the "distinguishing features of classes entitled to special protections." The nation's largest Protestant denomination is attempting to broaden its appeal beyond its traditional white Southern base. At the same time, leaders said they feel it is important to take a public stand on their opposition to same-sex marriage.
Southern Baptists: Gay rights not civil rights
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Rev. Fred Luter, pastor of the Franklin Ave. Baptist Church, delivers a sermon during Sunday Services at the Church in New Orleans, Sunday, June 3, 2012. The new face of a Christian denomination that formed on the wrong side of slavery before the Civil War could be an African-American preacher who grew up in New Orleans’ Lower 9th Ward. The Southern Baptist Convention holds its annual meeting in New Orleans next week and it could see the election of Luter as president. Faced with growing diversity in America and declining membership in its churches, the denomination is making a sincere effort to distance itself from its troubled racial past. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
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Fred Luter, Pastor of the Franklin Ave. Baptist Church in New Orleans reacts as he is elected president of the Southern Baptist Convention, at the convention in New Orleans, Tuesday, June 19, 2012. Luter is the first African-American to be elected president of the nation's largest Protestant denomination. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
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Fred Luter, Pastor of the Franklin Ave. Baptist Church in New Orleans, wipes away tears as he is elected as president of the Southern Baptist Convention, at the convention in New Orleans, Tuesday, June 19, 2012. Luter is the first African-American to be elected president of the nation's largest Protestant denomination. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
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Fred Luter, Pastor of the Franklin Ave. Baptist Church in New Orleans, right, wipes away tears as he is elected as president of the Southern Baptist Convention, at the convention in New Orleans, Tuesday, June 19, 2012. Luter is the first African-American to be elected president of the nation's largest Protestant denomination. Right is current president Bryant Wright. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
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Fred Luter, Pastor of the Franklin Ave. Baptist Church in New Orleans , reacts to the audience as he is elected as president of the Southern Baptist Convention, at the convention in New Orleans, Tuesday, June 19, 2012. Luter is the first African-American to be elected president of the nation's largest Protestant denomination. Behind him is current president Bryant Wright. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
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Elizabeth Luter, wife of Fred Luter, Pastor of the Franklin Ave. Baptist Church in New Orleans, reacts as he is elected as president of the Southern Baptist Convention, at the convention in New Orleans, Tuesday, June 19, 2012. Luter is the first African-American to be elected president of the nation's largest Protestant denomination. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
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