DOMA

I see that the Supreme Court has struck down the Defense of Marriage Act. The Court also struck down California's Prop 8 allowing gay marriage to resume in California.

I'm happy to see this decision. There's some outcry, of course, but i think the tide of public opinion has finally shifted. In 30 years I suspect people will wonder why this was ever even an issue.

Something that happened concurrent with this is I became aware of an argument being put out by some conservative Christians. It's long been acknowledged that Jesus said nothing about homosexuality, but some are taking a statement from the Gospel of Mark as evidence that he would disapprove of gay marriage. Jesus said...

But from the beginning of creation, "God made them male and female.' "For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.' So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate."

Mark 10:6-9.

The assertion is that Jesus was promoting the idea of monogamous marriage between a man and a woman over any other model. Actually, if you read the whole chapter you see that isn't the case.

The Pharisees asked Jesus if it was lawful for a man to divorce his wife. Jesus acknowledged that the Law of Moses allows a man to do so if he presents a certificate to her but condemned the practice as hard-hearted.

The view of marriage in biblical times was not that it was a loving relationship between equals. Marriage was an arrangement in which the woman was given to the man and more or less became his property. Women had some rights but nothing like the rights their husbands enjoyed. They were expected to be obedient and faithful, while the man was free to see prostitutes, or sleep with female slaves, or even marry new wives. Women had no recourse to divorce their husbands, even if they were flagrantly abusive, but a man could divorce his wife if she displeased him in any way.

This biblical model of marriage is not something we should want to return to. In two thousand years, marriage has become something much better than it was in those times. For us it is not compulsory or arranged, but entered into freely for the sake of love between equals. It has become something I believe Jesus would have approved of.

The free and equal union of two people who come together in love and faithfulness in one of the great blessings of life. It blesses two men or two women as surely as a man and a woman.

Those Who Love the Devil?

I ran across an image of this sign this morning.

After checking around a bit I found that it seems to belong to a man who likes to picket in front of strip clubs in New Orleans. It's an interesting collection of groups who he thinks love the devil.

Some of these are non-Christian groups: Atheist's, Agnostic's, Pagan's, Scientologist's, Buddhist's, etc.

Some are Christians but apparently not the right kind of Christians: Catholic's, Jehovah's Witness's, etc.

Some are doing things that are pretty universally considered self destructive: Druggie's, Drunkard's.

Others are doing things that we would all agree are harmful to others: Thieve's, Wifebeater's, Gangster's, Racist's, Liar's.

Some are in groups that Christian conservatives consider sinful: Homo's (presumably homosexuals), Abortionist's, Femenist's, etc.

Some seem to be people whose politics he doesn't agree with: Liberal's, Democrat's, Environmentalist's.

Some seem to be people who just annoy him: Loud Mouth Women, Sophisticated Swine, Sport's Nut's.

And some I can't quite figure out: P.K's, High Falutent.

The writer in me cringes at the spelling and the way this guy uses apostrophes. :) The Christian in me is saddened at the long list of people who he thinks are evil. It makes me sad because I know that this is how we are often perceived; as angry, judgmental people who are intolerant of anyone who is different then us for any of a wide variety of reasons. It makes me even sadder because I also know that there is a reason for this. The sign-wavers are real, the TV preachers who make intolerant proclamations on behalf of all Christians are real, the churches who shun members for being gay, or getting a divorce, or voting for Obama are real, and they've wounded a lot of people.

If you're like me and you run into someone who thinks all Christians are like that, your first response may be to get a little defensive. You may catch yourself saying things like: "All Christians aren't like that." "I'm not like that." "My church isn't like that."

While these things are true, they aren't necessarily very helpful to the people who have been burned. A wounded person doesn't need to hear a spirited defense of your faith, or your church, or even God. A wounded person needs healing, and that may mean letting go of the need to defend ourselves and listening to all the pain and outrage. It may mean, very sincerely, saying "I"m sorry." It certainly means caring about that person and their pain and responding with love and and acceptance even when we get unfairly lumped in with the sign-wavers.

It even means finding ways to love the sign-wavers too.