Gay Marriage and Christian Persecution

My friend, Joey, posted a note about being a liberal. Several of the 40 or so responses were people giving their opinions on gay marriage. Then, at Status this week, Kate gave a stunning sermon addressing many of the same philosophical issues. Below is my response which outlines how the recent votes banning gay marriage are the beginning of a very dangerous road.

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I have so much to say on all this, but there's just one aspect of this conversation I want to steer. Gay marriage.

We have to hone in on what the actual issue is here.
The issue is NOT, "is being gay a sin."
Nor is the issue, "do churches have to perform homosexual wedding ceremonies."

The real issue of the American gay marriage debate is, "should the United States government grant marriage licenses to gay couples."

My answer is absolutely NO. However, if you asked me, "should the Unites States government grant marriage licensees to heterosexual couples" I would respond with the same resounding NO.

Stop being misled by the gay marriage issue, and ask yourself the real question, "should the government really have the power and authority to determine with whom and the extent to which I am in consensual relationship with another person."

The government will take as much power as the people relinquish. We must stop giving it up!

This past November, the state of Florida passed Amendment 2, defining marriage as a relationship between a man and a woman. All it took was for 60% of those who voted on the issue to approve the amendment... effectively legalizing unconstitutional discrimination against individual liberty.

So, when 60% of the population wants to amend the state constitution to define legal religion as any religion other than Christianity, know that it was largely Christians who set the precedence.

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You may be able to read Joey's original facebook note here:
http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=100144330234

You can hear Kate's message here:
http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?i=46484313&id=119875638

Even NPR is saying it...

If I'm listening to the radio, it's most likely NPR. They are great at producing quality, creative journalism and feature stories. Being an avid listener, I'm no stranger to their left leaning tendencies. That's why I was surprised to hear economist, Susan Lee present a story on Market Place yesterday, Oct 7, promoting laizzes faire government.

It's fascinating that most economists (and in relationship to the 700B dollar bailout - most Americans) are for smaller government, yet our Senators and Congressmen vote their own way in these issues. What's even more fascinating is that politicians like Obama even have a viable voice on the national stage.

The problem is, most people are libertarians until socialism entices them toward greed... evidenced in the lure of "free" healthcare. Most Americans aren't willing to give of their money voluntarily (Joe Biden, for example, who has given around $300 on average to charity in the last 10 years despite making more than $300,000), but are fine voting for policies that take money from someone else and redistributes to their pocket. Americans aren't upset that corporations are "greedy." Americans are upset they aren't CEOs of large corporations.

Now, back to that NPR piece... Both the transcript and the audio segment can be found here:
http://marketplace.publicradio.org/display/web/2008/10/07/libertarian/

Ha! I just pasted the link and noticed that the last word is "libertarian." I knew there was a reason I wanted to seek this segment out after hearing it on the radio.

I can only hope that Lee's statement that laizzes faire government has come to an end is false, but this would take an awakening in our country that might not be possible. A country of fat, tv watching, video-game playing, quick-fix sleepers might never awaken from their lethargy. I don't know how loudly I can shout or how seductively I can whisper.