Now before I go any further, I would like to provide you with The Proclamation to the Family. I stand firm with these teachings and believe that marriage is between a man and a woman and I do not condone or support gay marriage. On that same note, I don't condone drinking, or drugs either. But who am I to say that someone can not choose to do what they wish freely? If someone chooses to do something that I believe is wrong, they will have the Lord to answer to in the next life, and I have no right to prevent someone from making those decisions.
I have been on the fence about this issue for quite some time. One day I support it. The next, I change my mind. I understand both sides.
Side A.
"Gay marriage is wrong."
"It will ruin the sanctity of marraige."
"Marriage is between a man and a woman."
"God defines marriage."
Etc.
Side 2.
"Gays and lesbians are people too, and deserve the same rights that you receive."
"The government does not have the right to deny you marriage."
"If you love someone, you should be able to marry and provide equally."
Etc.
I didn't quite fully accept this until I saw a video discussion the other day. One person said "I do not think gays should be allowed to marry, marriage is a religious thing. BUT I do however believe they should have a legal binding like a marriage a "civil union" that has all the benefits of marriage but doesn't have the name. That way crazy religious people are happy and so are the gays. They can choose to celebrate this civil union anyway they desire."
The rebuttal: "Okay separate-but-equal. That's the same thing as saying 'You still can have a water fountain. You just have to use THAT one over there and you can't be at the water fountain that the white people use. And you should still be happy because you're still getting your water.'"
Made me think a little. By denying someone marriage, you are saying "You are not equal. You are different, so you deserve less." I believe that everyone should have the same opportunities here on earth, whether it be in line with what I believe and feel is right, or the complete opposite. I know what the end game is, and what side wins.
I'm going to remind you that I do think gay marriage is a sin and I do not condone it. But again, who I am to say someone can not choose freely.
I do think that religious institutions should choose whether they perform a marriage or not. For me and my religion, I do not believe that a gay couple should be allowed to enter into the temple. The temple is a sacred place, and you cannot enter if you have sin. And according to the LDS religion, being gay is a sin. Having same-sex attraction is not a sin. But acting upon it is. I personally believe that Heavenly Father gave people same-sex attraction as a challenge and a trial in this life, just like He gave other people other trials and challenges that they will have to deal with and overcome. Take Josh Weed for example. He has same-sex urges, but chooses to ignore those urges and married a woman and now has a wonderful family because he knows of the promises that our Heavenly Father promised us for the afterlife, IF he chooses to follow the commandments and teachings of the prophets.
People against gay marriage say that it is going to ruin lives and destroy families. Frankly, it will not effect my family any more that alcohol or drugs will effect my family. I will raise my children, to the best of my ability, teaching them right from wrong. Gay marriage will be one of those things that I teach is wrong, right along side with drinking, drugs, pre-marital sex, etc.
And when they say that it will ruin the sanctity of marriage, how has Brittany Spears, or Kim Kardashian NOT ruined the sanctity of marriage? "About 1% of the total number of currently-married or registered same-sex couples get divorced each year, in comparison to about 2% of the total number of married straight couples." Huffington Post
When it comes down to it, let people make their own choices. Even if it against what you believe and you feel to be right, everyone has their own free agency.
And that is the beauty of this country.
(And if in the end I am COMPLETELY wrong and out of line about treating others the same as I would like to be treated and giving everyone a fair chance, then I will answer to the Lord. But at least I tried standing up for everyone having an equal chance at happiness.)
So because you allow Kim K to try to choose the right it means we should allow gays to break the commandments? That's an inconsistent argument.
ReplyDeleteI would continue nitpicking but I'm sure that since you don't know me, it would be for naught.
However I hope you sustain the Brethren. Please read their recent press report. It makes the issue much more clear. It includes:
"We firmly support the divinely appointed definition of marriage as the union between a man and a woman because it is the single most important institution for strengthening children, families, and society."
Sounds like keeping marriage defined how it is may be more important for your family than alcohol, doesn't it?
Technically, gays have already broken the commandments. And I'm not sure if you skipped the first paragraph, but I came out saying I fully support the proclamation to the world and think that gay marriage is a sin and that marriage is between a man and a woman. However, where I am coming from is just because I disagree with something, doesn't mean that people don't have the right to make those choices. Everyone has the right to commit as much sin as they want. They don't answer to me in the end. They will answer to Lord. Heck, by just being together and acting upon their urges, they are committing sin. But if they are happy, why should they not partake of the same freedoms and rights that I share with my husband? They are still human beings, I just don't necessarily agree with their lifestyle.
DeleteJust because God is the Judge doesn't mean we don't have an obligation to step in. Government has that obligation. They should stop murderers. Obviously I'm not calling for the government to condemn them, but only to stop this temporal issue. God only condemns. Remember how Abraham and Lot had to leave their homeland? A big part of that was because of the acceptance of the same issue.
ReplyDeleteGay marriage encourages children to not have a mother and a father which they are ENTITLED to according to the proclamation. Would you support a law that discourages something the proclamation supports?
Interestingly, another blog on the subject (opposite opinion to this blog) said something to the point that he could not honestly sustain any church leaders at conference if he supported gay marriage. He said the only way he could do that was with "mental gmynastics" (e.g. justifying what you know is wrong). He also said he couldn't pass a recommend interview with his bishop because of the nature of the questions there for the same reason.
Lastly, yes they are already together. They are already sinning. So why not support it?
1. Children are entitled (see above). They will be allowed adoption. They seem to be fit parents according to recent studies (albeit probably sponsored only by the interested parties) but prophetic voices have said otherwise. To support this law is to support more adoptions into families that do not have what children are entitled to by God.
2. It encourages more sin
3. They will be less likely to be baptized in the future (living in sin is a huge issue, not to mention they will have to get divorced before baptism which is a HUGE roadblock, not sure if you've done any missionary work but that makes it nearly impossible)
4. Family history will cease to exist for a large portion of the country because we cannot link generation to generation in the temple as we should because we cannot seal them.
5. They are wasting their life. There is absolutely no religious purpose to these unions. After this life it will only have served to delay or abort God's purpose, which is the immortality and eternal life of man.
I have often thought about this question and I can totally see your viewpoints. For me, I don't think there is room for us to sit back and just let others decide. You have to be hot or cold. One or the other. I would not vote for it, so I must vote against it.