While watching pictures and video from Ellen DeGeneres' wedding to Portia de Rossi, inside, I was just beaming and so happy for them. It is obvious how much they love each other and how special and significant their wedding was to them.
I'm supposed to be opposed to same sex marriage. But I'm not. This makes me a minority in most of my circles.
When I lived in Canada, some of my nicest, kindest, most wonderful friends were gay. Several of them were couples. I remember wishing they could be married because they were so great together and planned to be together forever. But they couldn't. It was not legal.
Understand, not all homosexuals want to be married or in a committed, long-term relationship. Not all heterosexuals do either. Of the ones who do, they want to take 'the next step' in their relationships with the person who means the most to them - like I did.
Blacks and women wanted to have the same rights as white men: to vote, to have equal pay for equal work, to be able to live in any neighborhood they could afford, to be able to attend the same events, to sit anywhere they want on a bus or in a concert hall, etc.. There was a time that was thought of as an abomination.
Two years before I was born, it was illegal in some states for a black person and a white person to be married. To the point where a married mixed race couple was ripped from their marital home and bed and taken to jail. My marriage to my white husband would have been illegal. The world has not come to an end. We've actually accomplished some pretty good things for our community as a married couple.
11 comments:
Well said.
I'm curious about how you see gay marriage in terms of how it relates to the Bible.
Good question. Thanks, Lori. Here is my take:
To me, it is more about the homosexuality and the individual's relationship with God. Show someone love and you show them God's love. Show them hate and avoidance and you show them the opposite of God's love.
I believe homosexuality is a sin. So is premarital sex. And so is adultery. And so is alcoholism and drugs, etc. Sin is sin.
I believe God loves all of the people on this earth. I believe God wants all of the people on this earth to accept His Son, Jesus, as their Lord and Savior.
I don't see how ostracizing people and making them feel like lesser beings makes them see Jesus as their homeboy.
To be honest, I would rather see a monogamous married couple (straight or gay) than 2 people living promiscuous lifestyles. Promiscuity causes pain and the eating away of a person's soul, one person at a time.
(Just for the record, I do not think homosexuals are "choosing" the easier road by being gay.)
I think marriage as a religious institution should stand as a union between a man and a woman. I think that if a gay couple choose to dedicate their lives to each other they should have the same legal rights as a married couple. I believe that they should be able to share insurance and have family visitation rights in medical situations. I do believe that homosexuality is a sin but like Simone said sin is sin and we want to wash over the sin that we feel is lesser and hold ourselves higher than the person whose sin we feel is worse than ours. If Christians would look at how the homosexual world has influenced culture over the past 20 years and stop yelling about how bad they are and take a lesson on how to shift culture maybe the numbers in Simone’s previous blog would be different. If you read Simone’s blog about church statistics I believe those numbers tell us that the church has become ineffective in our world today and we really need to rethink the whole approach to the gospel and take the lenses off that hinders us from really reaching, forget the world, our neighbors.
How is it that I am supposed to be the writer in the family and my husband is better able to state what I am trying to say here?!!
Because he has been having conversations w adults all day as opposed to children. (Just guessing!)
The term 'busted out laughing' would best describe my reaction to your intuitive response, Lori.
Great discussion!!
It is a joke that the "christian right" seems to think that by having the country (usa and canada) LOOK christian that it then will become christian!! There is not a distinction between christian and non-christian - we all look the same!! We cannot force people to think like we do. We cannot tell someone that this is wrong because the Bible says so...if they do not believe the Bible!!
SO - i guess what I am getting at is this. We do not need to attempt to impose our Biblical standards of right and wrong upon society...they won't get it. BUT - we do need to be better as a community of believers in holding each of us accountable...those of us that suggest we are christians now have a higher standard to uphold!
Unfortunately - we don't do either!!
just my thoughts!!
thank you for putting yourself and your beliefs on this issue out there. this is a very touchy and deeply personal issue and unfortunately the church tends to not leave room for conversation like this. i appreciate you being open about how you feel and know even for me, it was refreshing and encouraging to hear you say what you said. (note: this is my 'other' blog)
I hope ya'll can convince some of your conservative christian bretheren here in Cali about your point of view. My ability to marry after November depends on it!
I think marriage as a religious institution should stand as a union between a man and a woman.
Surely marriage as a religious institution should stand as defined by the members of that religion?
I wish majority religions would stop pretending to speak for all religions.
TRiG,
Atheist.
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