A neutral look at a volatile subject.
Two people want to express their love and devotion to each other by making a commitment via public ceremony-----what is the problem? Why won’t states allow gay men and woman to marry? The answer may be more of a can of worms than anybody really wants to admit.
The problem is that if you are gay, under our current law, you could not quality for marriage any more than a girl could qualify for a bar-mitzvah. Don’t hang up on me, let me explain. Our civil laws and definitions regarding marriage were founded by individuals who held to morals founded in the Judeo Christian ethic. Consequently, marriage is a primarily religious institution that was secularized for civil sake but has retained it’s original definition. –one man and one woman committing to one another.
The question therefore becomes a moral issue. How will society define marriage, and I submit that since society was not the author, society cannot rewrite it’s definition.
Other countries, in which gay men and woman have been allowed to unite legally do so under civil union laws. Those countries do not have the same moral foundation of government we do and therefore are not constrained by moral issues. I suggest that the American people need to decide where they are coming from and take a stand. If in fact we are no longer a “Christian “ nation, then we need to stop imposing morality on everyone. However, if we find that our civil principles are the most accurate representation of who we are, then we need to quit apologizing for what we believe. At a time when tolerance has become the doctrine of the people–American’s need to stand for something!