Every single person on this earth is guilty of wrong doing of some kind or another in their lives. In Christianity we call this sin. I’m not sure about how my non Christian readers feel about the term sin and I don’t want anyone tuning out and thinking that “this doesn’t apply to me because I’m not a sinner,” but having to say “person who is guilty of wrong doing of some kind or another at some point in their lives” is one heck of a mouthful and you would get tired of reading it. I am 100% sure that anyone will confess that they have done something wrong or not right in their lives, no matter how big or small and I also know that not everyone believes that they are a “sinner” or guilty of “sin.” But, for simplicity’s sake, when I use the word sin, I mean some type of wrong doing and when I say sinner, I’m not casting any labels or judgments on anyone, I just simply mean that you’ve done something not right at some point in your life.
So, every single person on this earth is guilty of sin. There are all kinds of different sins. But what makes something a sin? What makes something wrong? Is it us as a society that says what is right or wrong? We aren’t born with a moral compass and we are not born knowing right from wrong. Otherwise we would not have to teach our children that it’s wrong to hit or teach them to share. As an education major I have closely studied children’s development, including their moral development. I have studied and been taught practices that help aid children in moral growth. If we were born with a moral compass or knowing right from wrong, good from bad, I would not have needed to study such things and there would not be such things for me to study. So, if we do not instinctively have that ability from birth, how have we decided over the years what is moral and immoral? We have been given codes, rules and guidelines to follow and we too have been taught what is right and wrong. The dictionary defines sin as this: A transgression of divine law. Any act regarded as such a transgression, especially a willful or deliberate violation of some religious or moral principle. Any reprehensible or regrettable action, behavior, lapse, etc.; great fault or offense. Ok, so with all of that in mind, let’s look at some of the things that have traditionally been considered wrong in our society. Lying, stealing, cheating, murder, lust, addiction, violence, greed, envy/jealousy, pride, abuse, adultery, revenge, gluttony, abortion, vanity, disobedience, neglect, divorce, sex outside of marriage, gossip, hatred, materialism, prejudice, discrimination, selfishness and homosexuality. Now, there are tons more, but for the sake of my argument, I’ll stop there. You may not agree with everything on the list, but all of these things have been traditionally considered “wrong.” Now, what if every person who has ever stolen or wrongfully taken something, no matter how big or small, started telling the world that it was ok to do so? Telling the world that stealing is ok?? --- What if one day we woke up and all of the murders were rallying in the streets saying that murder was not wrong? Would we eventually start to believe them? Would we sit quietly and let them spread those messages because we wouldn’t want to offend them? Would we start to change laws that excused, encouraged or rewarded their behavior? Most likely not. So why is homosexuality any different? ---- Just to be fair and not just point fingers at homosexuality. There are plenty of other sins we have allowed society to do this with. We teach our children that lying is most defiantly wrong but then at some point down the road we find ourselves having an awkward and difficult conversation about why it was ok for mommy or daddy to lie in this ___ case. We no longer ask if lying is wrong, we usually ask something along the lines of “Is it ok to lie if/when……?” and according to our society, often times the answer is yes. Another example is having sex outside of marriage and living together outside of marriage. This trend is becoming pretty common and uncomfortably accepted in our society. The declining pattern in our moral standards, ladies and gentlemen, is called backsliding. So, I must ask, what is it that lets us become lax about some offenses and not with others? Selfishness. We don’t care if people lie as long as it doesn’t affect us. We honestly don’t care when people steal as long as it doesn’t affect us. We don’t care if they want to sleep around as long it doesn’t affect us. It is surprisingly easy to forget about abuse and neglect as long as it isn’t thrown in front of us to see, then it starts to affect us, it starts to bother us because it then reminds us that it is a problem. You know why we have capital punishment or put people away for life because of murder? Because murder strongly affects us in a way that is nearly impossible to escape. Even if the crime did not occur in your own little world, it creates a fear that it could --- and so it affects us greatly. As far as homosexuality goes, we have let them rally the streets and tell us all that it is not wrong. And we do sit back because we don’t want to offend them. We talk about it inside the safety of our Christian circles but we keep our mouths shut because we are scared to speak up and we don’t care enough –- until it affects us. We justify it by saying “that is their business” but then people get all upset when they find out that their son’s Boy Scout leader is gay – they get upset when it affects them. Homosexuality is wrong. Just because a group of people say it is ok does not mean that it is. I don’t care how common it is. Lying is common. Stealing is common. Divorce is common. Cheating, jealousy, greed, adultery, abuse, addiction, murder and lust are all common. That does not make them right. That does not mean that we should start creating laws and policies to allow them. That does not mean that they should be justified.
HOWEVER. The really big problem is not homosexuality. The problem is how we respond to it. Now, our world typically ranks sins. We say there are big sins and small sins, super bad sins and eh, you could have done something worse, sins. But the Bible teaches that all sins are viewed equal in the eyes of God. This means that lying, murder, homosexuality or tripping your little brother and laughing at him when he falls are all equally wrong. This is a really difficult concept for us (even myself) to grasp and remember because it is not the way our society views these wrong doings. The fact that we have such a ranking system is even wrong because it is merely a way for us to justify our own sins and allows us to be prideful in saying, “well, yea, tripping him wasn’t nice but it’s not like I killed him….” Our ranking system is only to make us feel better about our own sins and shortcomings. Because no one sin is worse than any other sin, and we have all sinned, it is not right to condemn someone because they are homosexual. It is not right to treat them any differently or to label them. They are so much more than just that. Homosexuality is not who or what they are, it is merely a detail of their life, we should not define who they are based on that – whether you think it is a sin or not. They are regular people. I can’t think of any decent examples right now, but I can tell you that there have been multiple occasions in my life where I have wrongly taken something that I shouldn’t have or didn’t belong to me. It doesn’t matter how “small” or the context, it is called stealing and therefore I am a thief. But I am not defined by that. There is no way my family or friends, or even a stranger on the street would walk up to me and judge me solely based on that. But it is done to homosexuals all of the time. We let it define them. So, when someone like me comes along and says that homosexuality is wrong, no wonder they freak, no wonder they get offended or upset. You just told them that WHO THEY ARE is wrong. No one is going to respond well to that. In their minds they’re thinking “I am gay and I am not bad” and they are right about that. But their message then becomes “being gay is not wrong.” Where if you come to me and say “Lynn, stealing is wrong” I am going to tell you that I know, and you will have reminded me that what I have done was not ok, not who I am is not ok. I have quite a few friends that are gay and I love them dearly. I have grown to love them for all of their other wonderful and even not so wonderful traits, there is so much more to their lives then just who they are attracted to, who they date and who they might marry one day. There is so much more to myself than just those things, how could I not possibly see that there is more to them. We should not freak out if our children have a gay teacher. I seriously doubt that when I am a teacher parents will pull their children out of my class because I’m a thief or even if they found out that I beat up on my older and younger brothers every single chance I get. Yes, homosexuality is wrong. It’s a sin, but they are not their sin! Odds are, if we wanted to use our earthly sin ranking system, being gay is not even their “worst” or “biggest” sin. You wouldn’t want people to look at you and only see what they think is your biggest flaw. You wouldn’t want people to judge you or treat you differently or discriminate against you because you’re a sinner. It is wrong to do it to others. They are people and we have to treat them that way. People love me even though I’m a thief and we have to show love to people even though they are gay. We should not make their sin of homosexuality any bigger than any of our own, it is just another sin. That’s it.
People’s sins are such a small part of who they really are and the only one who has any right at all to judge those sins is God. – and thank God! I can’t really tell you how difficult it was for me to type “I’m a thief” several times. My instinct was to word it in a softer, less incriminating way. I am about to do something else that is going to make me uncomfortable but it is something that I want to do, since this is my shot at honest here. I’ve already established that I’m a thief, and even a pretty abusive sister (by the way, even when the fights get a little heated with the brothers and I and sometimes our aim really is to hurt one another, the second someone does get hurt all fun is over. So, when I say abusive I don’t mean call the cops and an ambulance smack down. More like just call mama.) <--- oops! See, there you go. I couldn’t just say that “I’m an abusive sister.” I felt the need to justify myself. It is so hard to just make a list of your sins and faults for someone else to see without wanting to explain, lesion, rationalize or justify – because we don’t like being wrong or “bad.” So, here I go again for another try. As a Christian, I don’t always tell the truth, I am a liar. I
As we go through life our sinful nature does not disappear. Our nature is to be selfish. It is to lie to get out of trouble or to avoid something. It is to take whatever it is we want. We struggle constantly and the struggle or the urge to act in sin is not a sin, that is called temptation. Temptation is not a sin! It is when you decide to act or give into that temptation that it become sin. But you know what? Fortunately for us God is willing to erase all of our sin, no matter what it is. He sees beyond our sin and He loves us beyond our sin. As Christians we are forgiven and for those who are not, the price for redemption has already been paid, all they have to do is ask for it. We are all equal. All of our sin is equal. So yes, being gay is a sin but we are all guilty of sin and to God, there aren’t different types of sin, sin is just sin.
As Christians, what do we do with this? How should we react? So often I feel like if I open my mouth I will offend people and be seen as that intolerant, close minded judgmental, hypocritical Christian. As Christians we know that is not how we want to be viewed and so we sit back quietly because we like to think that is better than giving ourselves a bad name or making people angry. How do we handle this? First, we need to realize our own sins and realize that no matter what ours are, homosexuality is the same and then we need to start treating it just like we treat any other sin. We also need to move past judging people and labeling and defining them based on their sin. We need to LOVE them. Someone wise once told me “always speak the truth in the spirit of love.” This does not mean calling someone out or making them feel guilty because gosh, we are all just as guilty as they are in our own ways! We have to accept them for them. Unconditional love means that we love people entirely. This doesn’t mean that we only love the good things and ignore or dislike the negative. We have to love them for those negatives too. It is only after we truly, deeply and wholly love someone that we are able to sit down beside them and talk about all of the struggles and hardships that we face and fall into in this world. It is about sharing the struggles against sin of this world together. It is sitting down and saying “Dude, I am really struggling with this, and you know, I really fall short here. What are you struggling with?” – because we’re all struggling. We’re all carrying those burdens, both believers and non believers. It is not about casting judgments. It is about helping others pick up their burdens and walking together through your individual struggles.
I know we sit back on our tushies because we are scared. We like to pretend that we can quietly make a difference. But do you see how well that is working so far? ITS NOT! We have to do something. And I am not just talking about with homosexuality here. We are called to be salt of the earth. We are supposed to be preserving this earth and our society and we’re not. We have to put our foot down. We have to speak up. We live in a country where theoretically the majority rules. The loudest voice is supposed to be the one that wins and right now, our voice is so small. I am so thankful that this is not a physical war that I am fighting with my brothers and sisters in Christ because our spirits are down and we would be losing badly. If we lose, it is our own fault. If we lose it is because we did not do enough. Personally, I don’t want to have to answer to God for this. I don’t want to have to tell Him that I didn’t do enough or say enough or speak loudly enough or love enough, because I was scared. Our God did not give us the spirit of fear! He has given us nothing to be afraid of. We know that if we fight on God’s side no one can stop us, but yet, her in silence we sit. Since being in college, one thing I have learned is that hate is not the opposite of love. The ABSENCE of love is the opposite of love. Because see, if you hate someone or something, that means that you have strong feelings about it. It somehow matters in your life. It is when there is no hate or love that things get really bad because that means they just don’t care, that means it doesn’t matter at all. I have had professors remind us of this in a sense by telling us that it is really easy to pat a student on the back and say “you’re doing a great job” whether they are or not. But when the professor chooses to give you criticism instead, that is because they want you to become better. That is because they care. We as Christians need to start showing people that we actually care. I would prefer going the love rout personally, but even if sometimes people don’t like what we have to say – it is better than sitting around and not saying anything. When it comes to homosexuality, our message needs to be that there is nothing wrong or bad about people who are gay, but that homosexuality is a sin and that will not support changing laws or policies that will justify the sin.
Marriage was a gift given to man and woman by God. Realistically and honestly, we have poisoned it enough with our sin. The divorce rate is ridiculous. Some people have marriages that are like having a car. Get a spouse new, use it until it gets old, worn out and starts falling apart, or until we see something we like better, and then we dump the old model and go get a better one. There are marriages that are filled with abuse, adultery and neglect. If we keep opening the door for our sins to eat away at “Holy matrimony” then we are eventually going to end up with a generation down the line who doesn’t want to get married. We need to start trying to work out these problems and start fighting these battles. It’s not about discrimination against those who are homosexual. It is that the last thing we need is to purposely as a country add to the problems in marriage caused by sin.
no
ReplyDeleteAs a Christian it should be your prerogative to love people in spite of their sins, not make it your job to judge them. That is supposed to be for God and God alone.
ReplyDeleteNo one is asking you to agree with homosexuality, but your intent is all wrong.
Your post is rather long but worth reading. I don't miss the time I lost. I'm glad that you point the finger at both sides, however I'm not one to let you get away without so food for thought yourself.
ReplyDeleteI agree that one of the main the reasons we don't do anything about homosexuality is because it does not threaten us, but I don't think this is the only reason. I think another reason is we have a hard time seeing what is wrong with it. We should not have to justify God's law to ourselves in order for them to apply, yet all to often we feel the need to. We aren't born with some innate moral compass, but growing up in society we have a tendency to pick up a lot of the same morals along the way. As such there are certain basic things that seem wrong to us, such as stealing. Homosexuality isn't one of them. Were there (heaven forbid) no God, we would easily be able to justify much of what God calls wrong as being wrong, but this is difficult if not impossible with homosexuality. Also while I would argue that the bible is pretty clear on homosexuality and how it is wrong, not everyone seems to think so. I have a couple of friends who have seen the verses but just don't get it, even though they are Christians.
Secondly, I think much of the reason we don't act, is because we aren't really sure what to do about it. What should we do about it? Seriously I'm really not sure. Not being hateful, yet also not doing nothing sounds great, but what does it mean when the rubber hits the road? If we have Christian friends who are about to enter a gay marriage we can warn them of the sin they are about to commit, but other then that I can't think of much. You mention the idea of "not support[ing] laws or policies that will justify the sin." but I'm not sure I know what you mean. The way you have it worded I agree, but I'm not sure how a law or policy can do that.
(continued in next post)
(continuation of previous post)
ReplyDeleteTo illustrate my point, let me ask you this. Should lying be legal? We both agree that lying is a sin, but I bet we both also agree that unless it is under certain specific circumstances (such as under oath) that it should be legal. Does having a law that states that lying is legal justify lying as not being a sin? I don't think it does. I personally don't see from a legal perspective why gay marriage would be any different. Then again I don't think legal marriage is marriage under God, but rather church marriage. Do I think churches should allow gay marriage? Absolutely not! No respectable Christ following church should ever do such a thing.
I know this may sound like a lot of criticism but I hope you don't take it that way. I'm actually trying to help you. I think this post as a whole is really good, and I am proud of you for admitting so openly your struggles and sins. You are a strong person Lynn and while we haven't hung out much, It's post like this that show me how serious you are about Jesus (such a rare quality these days), which causes me to cherish you more as a friend.
It is difficult to be honest about our sin. To just really say it as it is, as you demonstrated in this post. I would argue however that sometimes we are legitimately unsure whether or not we have sinned, and so "I might have..." is not necessarily an indication of justification, however I acknowledge that 9 times out of 10 it is.
I admit that holy matrimony has taken a lot of abuse, and it makes me very sad. Yet I am part of the problem. I am not married yet, but when I look forward to marriage, I often find myself thinking about me, and what I'll get out of being married. Being married to Ginger, really sounds nice, especially after having been apart for four years, and there is certainly nothing wrong with looking forward to it, but I just tend to look at it so selfishly. It's all to often "Yes, I'll get to see her often and have her all to myself!" and not "I'll be able to help her in ways that I can't now." Its this selfishness that spawns this better and newer model mentality, because lets be honest, if you are looking at marriage for what you will get out of it, you will never be satisfied. Not to say that marriage isn't satisfying. No it is very satisfying to the selfless. However the selfish mind is never satisfied.
But yeah, great post.
(addendum of previous post)
ReplyDeleteAnd yes I know the whole Ginger thing gives away my identity but I want you to know I am Adam Hassler. I just don't feel like signing into to gmail or w/e, and I'm not sure you'd know who I was if I did.
"I am against homosexuality. BUT just because I am against it does not mean that I am judgmental or that I discriminate or am hateful against people who live this lifestyle."
ReplyDeleteYou judge that it is wrong. You are judgmental. Who are you to decide? Don't give me that Leviticus crap, either, unless you also follow the rest of it as strictly.
There is a big difference between making a judgment about somebody or something and condemning the person. We cannot be functional humans beings without making judgments. Discernment and wisdom are both admirable traits, and both hinge on being able to make judgments.
ReplyDeleteIf you honestly believe something to be a sin, something that erects a barrier between a person and God, to stand aside and do nothing is not an act of tolerance or an act of love to that person. If effect, you are simply letting them wander unknowingly off the cliff without doing anything to help. If, after talking to somebody in love about the sin you perceive, that person continues to pursue the sin, at least you tried. At that point, it's time to mosey on down to the bottom of the cliff to help pick them up after the fall.
You're a disgusting person. God will never love someone with so much hate in their heart.
ReplyDeleteNothing judgmental about that last comment.
ReplyDeleteI'm still hoping this is an April fool's joke. If I didn't know that you wrote this, I would have called poe's law on this. This is going to get long and possibly full of rambling, so I'll try to organize it as best as I can.
ReplyDelete“What if one day we woke up and all of the murders were rallying in the streets saying that murder was not wrong? Would we eventually start to believe them? Would we sit quietly and let them spread those messages because we wouldn’t want to offend them? Would we start to change laws that excused, encouraged or rewarded their behavior? Most likely not. So why is homosexuality any different?”
This part is probably the part that I was most confused and saddened by. For one thing, homosexuality hurts no one (and even if you would argue that it would, it's certainly not on the level of murder); two consenting adults enter into the relationship. You can argue for lots of different effects on society as a result of homosexuality, but ultimately, none of them will affect the way you live your life. Life your life; let them live theirs.
“The declining pattern in our moral standards, ladies and gentlemen, is called backsliding.”
Really? Because there was a time when it was considered a decline in moral standards that women were allowed to work outside of the home and vote. That had biblical support too. “A woman should learn in quietness and full submission. I do not permit a woman to teach or to assume authority over a man; she must be quiet. For Adam was formed first, then Eve.” - 1 Timothy, Chapter 2. Would you suggest that your ability to post this kind of thing represents a moral backsliding? I certainly wouldn't.
This is probably a good point to talk about what I call “biblical cherry picking.” You never actually cite a specific verse from the bible, but I understand that there are a few places of reference in regards to the sinfulness of homosexuality. Admittedly, this will be making your argument into a straw man, but I don't really see another option. The most popular verse that demonizes homosexuality is in Leviticus. Leviticus also regards the eating of pork (which you're having catered to your wedding) as well as the ritual uncleanliness of a women up to seven days after her menstrual discharge. We don't follow those, but for some reason it's still okay to use this verse in regards to homosexuality.
Leviticus is not alone by any means; there are also examples in First Corinthians and in Romans. These are letters by Christ's followers much like Timothy (which I was referencing before in regards to the silence of women). What does it say about us that we would rather pick the verses that we agree with to follow? Are we following the Bible, or just our own prejudices?
“But the Bible teaches that all sins are viewed equal in the eyes of God.”
...Are you sure? There are some passages suggest that all are the same in that they will all be forgiven, but there's not much more than that. Even Matthew 12 says that transgressions against the spirit will not be forgiven, suggesting that not all are equal. I wholly believe that they are not equal, and that truly some are worse than others; I have a feeling that you do too, but you're scared to admit it because it will speak out against some bible verses. Again, why follow those and not others? What does your choice of scripture say about you? (continued)
“The loudest voice is supposed to be the one that wins and right now, our voice is so small”
ReplyDeleteMajority rule, minority rights. That's how the system must work. We cannot trample the rights of those with whom we disagree. We support their rights as we would want them to support our own. This includes the rights of legal marriage (with respect to government, not church), protection from persecution, and their own pursuit of happiness. I can't speak for the gay community, but I think they'd want their rights more than they'd want to change your religion. Again, let them live your lives, and live your own.
“Some people make the choice to be homosexual and others say that is just how they are, its how they were born. No, that is not how God created them, but because they were born into a world of sin, maybe they were in consequence 'born that way.'”
I know you believe homosexuality is a choice, but you have to consider that love is a chemical process, and sometimes it just doesn't make sense. There's a good wikipedia article on the subject of “Biology and Sexual Orientation” that you can check out; its sources are pretty good too. The fact is, you didn't choose to love William (at least, not a conscious choice), but it happened anyway. Why would you believe that gay love would be any different? If both consent to the relationship as adults, who are we to declare that their love is not true?
I'm wrapping up soon, I promise. You commented about marriage being poisoned enough. Marriage has not always been what it is today; for years it had been a political tool of power with men marrying away their daughters for profit or influence. Recently, the idea that a woman should have a say in her own marriage has arisen. Is this a corruption of marriage? In any case, should it matter? Does it corrupt your marriage to know that someone else is married? If you believe that God will not recognize such marriages, why should it matter to you? There is a difference between legal marriage (a marriage recognized by the state for tax and other purposes) and a holy matrimony. If your problem is with the latter, then don't worry about it; your marriage is sacrosanct, and you are free to believe that theirs is not. If your problem is with the former, that's much more rights-based issue.
Finally, regardless of how I feel about any aspect of your article, you should be more careful about what you post online. This is a public post, and this will come back to you when you apply for jobs and other things. You will likely have to teach gay children, and this post could give a potential employer pause about whether you'd be up to the task. A simple google of your name brings up a tweet of yours with a link to this blog: http://lmgtfy.com/?q=brittany+lynn+kidman. What goes on the internet is permanent.
I'm going to end this by quoting Queen just because I can.
“And love dares you to care for
The people on the edge of the night
And love dares you to change our way of
Caring about ourselves
This is our last dance
This is ourselves
Under pressure”
My apologies for any grammatical and spelling mistakes.
TL;DR I'm calling poe's law. Murder and homosexuality are not the same. Avoid cherrypicking bible verses. Live and let live. Be careful what you say on the internet.
OH My, Brittany. Where did you get such deep insight at such a young age. God has blessed you with discernment and honesty. Your unconditional love for your fellow man/woman is truly a reflection of Gods love for us. Your honesty about your own struggles and failures with sin is comendable. God LOVES the sinner and HATES the sin. We have all sinned and come short of the glory of God. Thank you for sharing. You did a great job of putting it into words and perspective. You love because God loves.
ReplyDeleteJohn brings up an interesting point. You used no bad language or derogatory terms. You spoke without malice of honest human feelings. You gave no indication of being unable to work with or teach somebody because they might be a homosexual. And yet, your very future livelihood could be jeopardized because you went against Political Correctness, that says that anyone who does not actively celebrate the homosexual "lifestyle" is by definition a bigot. And YOU are supposedly the intolerant one. This is the not-so-subtle extortion of what Orwell called NewSpeak and we simply call PC today.
ReplyDeleteLynn, I have a few words to say about this as well. I personally, do not agree with what you have said here, but I am a Christian. I believe in the fundamentals of Christianity and that you should love everyone for who they are. Morals are based on the society in which they reside. In America, we instill the morals of truthfulness, integrity, sincerity, as well as a whole list of others. In other societies, the people have different moral systems in which murder, stealing, and doing mind-altering drugs for religious purposes is considered "good." In this country it is even sometimes considered moral for a man to steal food to feed his family if they are starving and have no money if there are legitimate reasons as to why he does not have a job. The Romans believed that homosexuality was not "bad" and they embraced it. People are not born moral, they are taught by society. The issue with the legal standards for homosexuality is not fair. Do you think that gay people should lie about who they truly are in order to make some people in society happy? Being gay makes those people happy. They have an unalienable right in this country to pursue happiness. Everyone deserves to be happy and by not supporting the people of one group with even allowing them to marry is hindering them of their happiness. Christianity is a religion, not everyone believes in the same religion and that is why there is a separation of church and state. Marriage is not a part of religion, it is a legal matter, one that you need to get a license to perform. The United States was founded by a group of Christian men and even though there is a separation of church and state, the majority of the country is Christian of some form, no matter if they are Catholic or Lutheran, or Baptist. The minority is homosexuals. When they have protests, they are nonviolent, which is one of their rights in the Constitution. There is nothing in the Constitution of the United States against homosexual marriages and since marriage is not a religious issue then it should not be illegal. People are people and they should be happy no matter what makes them happy.
ReplyDelete"People are people and they should be happy no matter what makes them happy."
ReplyDeleteAre there ANY lines that should not be crossed? Beastiality? Incest? Child "molestation" (certainly a judgmental term)? Rape? All of them make the person committing them "happy." Isn't it horribly judgmental and arbitrary and, dare I say it, bigoted, to condemn any of these activities simply because we might not agree with them?
this is the most facile argument with regards to homosexuality. the difference is, and has always been, consent. there is no slippery slope. there is no sex with ducks. there is no marrying your dog.
ReplyDeletehomosexual relationships are consensual. none of your examples were.
It's not as "facile" as some would like it to be. Incest can certainly be consensual. "Statutory rape" can certainly be consensual. Society (the same society that opposes such things as gay marriage) has dictated that below a certain age, humans are incapable of making sexual decisions for themselves (hence the statutes). The difference is one of law, just like homosexuality was once a matter of law. NAMBLA today would call age-of-consent laws bigoted, and they often get to march in parades. Besides, without any sort of moral compass, such an archaic concept as "consent" could be legislated away. So, again I ask, where and how and by what authority do you draw the line of what is acceptable behavior? There is no "easy" answer. That's why it's disingenuous to automatically dismiss those who do not agree with your position as "bigots."
ReplyDeleteBeing considered the most judgemental person in Brittany's life, this probably will come as a surprise to her. I agree with her. On the other hand, being exmilitary, I spent a huge portion of my life defending the freedoms of the American people to be what they will. Whether it is a Patriot, a socialist or a slug. God will judge all for their inequities in due time, but the time we spend on this earth and the blood that was shed for equal justice is not deserving of laws or policies that place individuals on a pedestal, giving them a greater protection or status above that of any other, regardless of race, religion or sexual preference. Equal means equal not fair.
ReplyDeleteEqual is not always equal. I think I should be able to compete in the Special Olympics. I think I might be able to do pretty well and may even be able to find an event in which I could win. Ridiculous, you say? Of course it is. The Special Olympics is not intended for everybody, rather for a particular subset of the population. Marriage is the same way. It is not intended for everybody. It is intended to confer the blessing of God on the union of a man and a woman. If you (1) don't believe in or want the blessing of God on the union or (2) don't want the union to be between a man and a woman, the civil union route is the way to go to secure all the benefits of marriage. To change the definition of marriage to suit the desires of some new group is not equality. There is no constitutional right to be married. If a Federal Judge gets to redefine marriage with the bang of a gavel, then I want to redefine "Federal Judge" because I think it would be cool to be one of those myself. If equal means equal, that is.
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