Yesterday, New York passed laws that will recognize same-sex marriages.
For all the reading I have done on this topic, for all the conversations I've had with various people, and for all the rhetoric that so often attaches itself to people of faith like me,
I just don't care.
In fact, what annoys me more than anything else, is that government employees (at your expense) spent time and resources debating this matter to begin with. That, is another post entirely. Some people believe that laws like this are good. Some believe laws like this are bad.
Allow me to address both groups.
To the people who favor same sex marriages:
Marriage is a failure in this country. Any Google search you care to do on the subject of marriage in America will prove that. Marriages fail at an alarming and ever increasing rate across every statistical spectrum. So, why the fight to gain legal standing into such a failed institution? Is it because these "rights" you seek will afford you some measure of financial benefit? Some kind of tax filing kudos? Are you in search of a better deal from your health insurance provider? If any of those are the case then let's call this what it really is.....a debate over money, not marriage.
To the people opposed to same sex marriages:
It's the heterosexual people who have screwed up "marriage" to begin with in this country. The statistics show that most people don't really care about marriage or family from the get go.
Perhaps if the divorce rate did not routinely hover around 40 percent, you might have a leg to stand on. You're not even doing it correctly yourself!
For myself, I'd be content to abolish all marriage licenses. Get rid of any and all tax implications that benefit married people. If health insurance providers want to screw you, believe me, they don't need to hang their hat on whether you are legally married or not. They are among the biggest crooks in the world. They will get your money either way.
Besides, who says marriage is a "right"? People often say healthcare is a "right". To that end we have allowed the government a great deal of say-so in the healthcare business. And look at the bang up job they have done there! In my not so humble opinion, marriage is more than anything else, a spiritual commitment. No silly law(s) either in favor of, or in opposition to what God intended marriage to be can change a thing. People all over this planet are married in jungles. People since the dawn of time have gotten married without getting a license from the state of NY.
Is this what we really want? Gay or straight, do we wish to be defined by what some government says we are? Do you want some person, whom you have never met, signing and passing around paperwork that says who you are, what you stand for, what you give your money to, and what you believe in?
I am not defined by the wisdom of this world.
Neither is my family or my relationship with my partner....er, um...wife.
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14 comments:
So glad I don't live in New York!
What's missing is both the love and fear of God!
I am grateful for David Tyree and all who opposed this legislation. However, it was clearly not enough!
Shamus, can you post the Tyree article and you tube interview about his opposition to gay marriage?
You should care
Ya gotta do better then that, Carl.
Faith cannot be legislated.
The Christian walk, and the American dream, are not one in the same.
nothing about this post surprises me! I don't know that we have ever discussed this topic, but I know you and you know me. So, I'm sure you know what I'm about to say... but I'll say it anyway.
I couldn't agree more with you on the fact that the government should have no place in marriage. It is between the 2 of you (whoever) and God. However sadly that is not how things work, so we have to play their game.
The important thing in my opinion isn't whether or not society would accept a couple as married or not. What I think is more important are the "rights" that go along with that stupid title. Yes, insurance/ tax benefits... right to medical decisions... all the little stupid things too, like time off if your significant other is sick. Those are things I think that everyone, regardless of sex, is entitled to.
While I don't plan on getting married, why shouldn't those that want that title be allowed?
If a private business, a gym, a car repair shop, a flower shop, wants to give a person time off for whatever, then so be it.
If they chose not to do so, then so be it.
They should not be made to agree, or disagree with anything. They should not be forced to grant time off because of some law.
If that same business has lousy policies and does not treat their employees correctly, the business will go under.
If a hospital or doctor decides who to share information with, or who to withhold it from, and he/she does so in a poor manner, then he/she will not have a strong patient following.
In all these ways, people should make these decisions. They should not fear the repercussions of some government.
I do not recognize any such “rights”
Gay or straight, black or white, somebody show me where we are promised, or guaranteed these alleged rights.
My rights come from God, because he created me. Period
If we would agree that the Bible is the basis for what God says is right and wrong...then read it. There is almost NO mention of individual rights, as it pertains to a single person. Fewer still references to the "rights" of a group.
In fact, the Bible teaches us more often then not……to give up our individual rights.
I will not play their "game", as you put it.
I agree with you that thats how it SHOULD be, but unfortunately that's not really how it is.
and you are playing the game, not that it's a bad thing... but you got married. you have those "rights". if (god-forbid!) something happened to kris and she was in a coma forever... you would be the one to decide what to do. that's what that piece of paper gives you that it wouldn't a gay couple who has been together 40 years but not recognized by society.
I'm insulted that you think I'm playing some game.
I'll go tear up my effin marriage license right now. Will I be any less married? NO.
You are seeing marriage as something you need a government to endorse to ensure its legitimacy
I am not.
My marriage is real because I made a promise to God first, and to Kris second.
As for what could happen without a marriage license, in the event of a life or death situation, or other such serious situation….
I don’t give a shit!!!!!
I trust that God, in such a situation, will honor my commitment to him, and take care of the details as he sees fit.
Not me, not any concerned family, and not some government that may or may not have “approved” of my marriage.
I understand what you're saying. I think we're losing a lot of explanation through this form of conversation. let's talk about this sometime...
You should care!
I blogged about this shortly after it happened. While I agree what much of what you say Shamus, I can't just not care. Yes, it seems as though marriage has failed for the vast majority of couples who try it. But, it is the only subsidy we have to reward couples who get married. The purpose of this subsidy is expressly to procure children for our future. The Secular Case Against Gay Marriage definitely makes the case.
Jack,
You stated...
"But, it is the only subsidy we have to reward couples who get married."
I believe I understand what you are saying. However, they can keep their reward.
Read Romans 1: 18-32
Read GENESIS 2:18-25
I enjoyed this post immensly. I really don't see what the big hub-bub is about over gay marriage to begin with. And, yes, I see it as a huge waste of my tax dollars fighting it as if it were a diseased animal trying to set up camp in America as a household pet!
I wish more people "awoke" from their dream state and realized, like you, that the bigger issues at hand have nothing to do with gender marriages!
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