My monitor finally melted down today, so I was unable to post. Actually, unable to even tell I was on my computer. Now that I'm finally up and at 'em, I offer the following observation. It was sent to me an email from one of the dedicated followers of this blog. I really would like to thank all the dedicated followers of this blog.Same Sex Cheeseburgers
by Rabbi Brian Wed Jun 27, 2007
Same Sex Marriage as a Bacon-Double Cheeseburger.
Many Americans will not eat pork. Many Americans site biblical injunctions as their reasoning for not eating pork. And, many Americans will not eat pork for other religious or health reasons as well.
Nonetheless, in America the sale of bacon is still legal.
Similarly, there are Americans who interpret the biblical prohibition against boiling a kid in its mother's milk as meaning that they should not consume milk and meat in the same meal. But it is still legal for Americans who enjoy milkshakes with their cheeseburgers to do so..
The Bible is not and must not be the basis upon which laws of this country are made. The basis of the laws of this country are to be found in the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, as well as the hearts of our elected and appointed representatives.
Why shouldn't we use the Bible as a basis for our laws? Because our society is thousands of years more complex than that of Biblical days. Because the Bible tolerates slavery, the slaying of disobedient children, and ownership of women. Moreover, countries in which religious doctrine is used as the basis of law have been governments that the United States of America has historically opposed.
Consequently, any citation of the Bible with regard to the civil law of marriage especially with regard to same-sex marriage, is moot.
Simply put: much like those who believe that God doesn't want them to eat dairy and meat simultaneously abstain from eating bacon-double cheeseburgers, if you disapprove of homosexual unions, don't enter into one.
With love,
Rabbi Brian
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That's the problem with secular democratic societies. They have to take into consideration the thoughts and feelings of everyone. In order not to step on one group of people they need to emphasise free choice and free will. It's up to those who disagree with gay marriage not to enter into one. Believe it or not, there are gays out there who do not believe in gay marriage and won't enter into one. And then there are hundreds of thousands of straights who do believe in traditional marriage and enter into those vows and then break them. Hence our divorce statistics. The moral of the story: Marriage is about far more than sexual acts, and even though well meaning people are making real commitments in the present moment, the future still holds many situations in which the vowers are not prepared and the vows don't hold.
Gay marriage is coming. The Church can fight this in every democracy in the world but they will still lose. They can not expect anyone to believe gay marriage adversely affects straight marriage, when straight marriage has failed on it's own for decades. I"ll take Rabbi Brian one step further. If you can't seriously commit to traditional marriage--of any sort--than don't do it, and please, don't have children. They pay a big price. I know this from personal experience.
God bless Rabbi Brian and his words of wisdom.
ReplyDelete"The Bible is not and must not be the basis upon which laws of this country are made. The basis of the laws of this country are to be found in the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, as well as the hearts of our elected and appointed representatives."
We have tried to tell religious fundamentalist brothers and sisters why you cannot jam cheeseburgers down everyone's throats in a democracy and neither can you ban cheeseburgers in a democracy. But they continue to waste their time and money and resources overlooking the fact that people do have Free Will and can choose to not eat cheeseburgers or eat them.
I don't know who came up with the ridiculous notion that gay marriage hurts heterosexual marriages. That's like saying that my neighbor's marriage is dependent upon my marriage's success or failure. Like you said Colleen, "They can not expect anyone to believe gay marriage adversely affects straight marriage, when straight marriage has failed on it's own for decades."
Gay marriages will have their problems just as straight marriages have theirs, and some will end in divorce. Neither group can blame the other or someone else for their own marital bliss or divorce.
As long as marriage exists, there will be success stories as well as divorces. Sometimes relationships are like the roll of the dice on a roulette table, or a bet on a horse at the Kentucky Derby. Marriages used to be arranged by one's family. Who is going to allow that again? That's just another form of slavery if you ask me. But some religions require this practice of arranged marriage. Should they enforce their religious doctrine on everyone?
Nope. I thank God for the Enlightenment and for the US Constitution that people have the right to practice their religion or practice no religion, but no right to force others to practice their religion.
Butterfly this article hits on one of the big lies of the traditional marriage movement. Our Constitution and Bill of Rights are not based on the bible.
ReplyDeletePio No No considered American democracy a form of heresy. He saw it as being based in ideas of the Enlightenment and antithetical to Christianity. Antithetical at least in terms of Catholic notions of authority. As we all know, Catholicism is not a democracy.
"Pio No No considered American democracy a form of heresy."
ReplyDeleteThis is a shame and really has more to do with the hierarchy being fearful and controlling.