Op-ed by NC UCC minister blows away the 'one-man, one-woman marriage' bible beaters
Sue Null
Op-ed by NC UCC minister blows away the 'one-man, one-woman marriage'
bible beaters
by: Pam Spaulding
Tue Mar 15, 2011 at 21:47:23 PM EDT
Rev. Douglas S. Long, minister at Umstead Park United Church of Christ,
wrote an op-ed
http://www.newsobserver.com/2011/03/14/1046107/dont-be-wedded-to-every-tradition.html#ixzz1GipZC0sy
in the Raleigh News & Observer that is worth the click because it
takes the anti-gay bible-beaters who are pushing for a marriage
amendment here in North Carolina on the turf where it needs to be fought
- biblical, traditional marriage.
Yes, I know that there is a separation of church and state, but for many
so-called people of faith, they refuse to understand the concept...even
elected officials charged with passing civil laws. The fact is that I
heard and saw this myself during one of Equality NC's Day of Action at
the General Assembly.
At this year's Day of Action, I spoke with an ally, an opponent of a
state amendment to our constitution, State Rep. Larry Bell (D-21st), who
represents in a more rural district. I asked him whether the argument
that an amendment would be bad for business in NC, he shook his head
sadly and said "these people pushing the amendment are too far gone over
this...it won't make a difference."
I was kind of surprised, then offered, "would it make a difference if we
brought pastors, ministers, rabbis, etc., who want to marry same-sex
couples to testify?" After all this would mean passing an amendment
would, in fact, be discriminatory based on religion. You can't have it
both ways. Rep. Bell nodded in agreement.
And I thank you, Rev. Long for taking on this argument...
The truth of the matter is that the Bible is not a good source
supporting monogamous and mutual marriage that our society and culture
has evolved to embrace.
More systematically than considering a favorite passage here and
there, Vaughn Roste, the son of two Canadian Lutheran pastors with a
seminary degree of his own, has undertaken a comprehensive study of
passages in the Bible, researching more than 800 Biblical references
that deal with marriage. He distilled from that study what he refers to
as "The 12 Biblical Principles of Marriage." In summary, in the Bible:
* Marriage consists of one man and one or more women.
* Nothing prevents a man from taking on concubines in addition
to the wife or wives he may already have.
* The concept of a woman giving her consent to being married is
foreign to the biblical mindset.
* If a woman cannot be proven to be a virgin at the time of
marriage, she shall be stoned
For those who claim these are all Old Testament laws and that the
New Testament supersedes them, consider in the New Testament that:
* Women are allowed to marry the man of their father's choosing
... because women are the property of their father until married and
their husband afterwards.
* Interfaith marriages are prohibited.
* If a man dies childless, his brother must marry the widow
* Divorce is forbidden, and finally ...
* It's better, according to St. Paul, to not get married at all.
The point is this, anyone can pick and choose a verse or phrase
from the Bible which, taken alone and literally, will appear to support
their argument. While people of the Judaic-Christian tradition may
disagree on the propriety of same-gender marriage, can we at least agree
to not misuse the Bible in the process?
And, of course we found out during Perry v Schwarzeneggar that the
"experts" in favor of Prop 8 wilted when they had to produce evidence
against same-sex marriage not rooted in the Bible, but in science.
The key is to rip away the pitiful use of a holy book to justify
discrimination in civil law. What has been the sticking point on our
side has been the reluctance to "go there." We need to help our
religious allies come forth and show that there is not one religious
viewpoint on the matter, and to force the bigots to find a rational,
reality-based argument against letting gay and lesbian couples marry
that isn't ultimately rooted in bigotry.
Pam Spaulding :: Op-ed by NC minister blows away the 'one-man, one-woman
marriage' bible beaters
2 comments
if you want the references
My interest was piqued because I'm FB friends with the guy who did the
original research upon which this column is based (Vaughn Roste.) I
found the original piece that he wrote, which gives chapter and verse
for the bullet points:
http://www.samesexmarriage.ca/...
by: DubNotDubya @ Tue Mar 15, 2011 at 21:04:16 PM CDT
______________________________
When playing the pick-n-choose bible verse game, this one is always fun
Particularly the King James version in reply to the literalists
Psalm 133
1 Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together
in unity!
2 It is like the precious ointment upon the head, that ran down upon the
beard,
even Aaron's beard: that went down to the skirts of his garments;
3 as the dew of Hermon, and as the dew that descended upon the mountains
of Zion: for there the LORD commanded the blessing, even life for evermore.
--brethren dwelling in unity, beards, skirts -- oh my!
by: HunterC @ Tue Mar 15, 2011 at 21:07:01 PM CDT