Marriage Equality: Against the Bully Pulpit

?

The Christian Right are trying to pretend that they will be besieged by hordes of polyester wearing, badly coiffed, gap toothed lesbians and gay men demanding to be married in their churches. Oh, please!

?

However, the Christian Right has had some success with this strategy overseas, repackaging themselves as ?the new oppressed? in this context, and raising bogus issues of ?religious freedom.?? At the present moment, most New Zealanders are secularised, accept our right to freedom from discrimination, as well as the Christian Right?s freedom of speech, conscience, belief and worship.

?

And in any case, the Marriage Equality Bill is about secular and civil marriage equality, not about compelling religious sects to abandon their doctrines and be ?forced? to preside over lesbian and gay religious weddings if they do not believe that their religious beliefs are compatible with open lesbian and gay identification. Indeed, they now admit that earlier spin otherwise about a clause within the Marriage Act 1955 was intended to stop religious groups from vilifying the propriety of each other?s marital ceremonies and rituals from a time when Christian interdenominational relations were far more acrimonious than they are now. So, no, they will not be compelled to preside over lesbian and gay civil marriages, or religious ones, if they do not believe that their religion should permit out lesbians and gay men to celebrate and solemnise monogamous relationships.

?

However, there is a difference between respect for religious freedom in that context and their own compulsion of those people of faith who do not share their own religious beliefs.? In the United States, two Unitarian ministers, Dawn Seacrest and Lynn Greenleaf, were arrested while engaged in carrying out same-sex weddings. Granted, they were later released, and acquitted, back in 2004, but that?s not the only case of religious compulsion that comes to mind in this context.

?

At their recent General Assembly, the fundamentalist-dominated and dying Presbyterian Church of New Zealand tried to compell liberal ministers and congregations not to preside over same-sex religious weddings, and deny them their freedom of religious belief, conscience and reasonable practise. And let?s not forget heroic?Terry Studdart, that Catholic teacher up in Whangarei, who was dismissed by Pompallier Catholic College for daring to challenge his principal over the latter?s attitudes and statements against marriage equality.? So, who, exactly, is coercing whom in this context??

?

Obviously, the Christian Right are not acting in good faith in this context. It?s the same story as usual- they think that they represent a (false) universal ?norm? or ?general public? in this context, rather than a specific religious minority organisation. Granted, that does not mean that they shouldn?t be entitled to freedom of belief, conscience, assembly, worship and doctrine, and broad areas of freedom of religious practise. However, if that practise harms others, then that latter right should not be untrammelled and must be restricted.

?

Conservative Catholics may not believe in the morality of abortion, but they cannot be allowed to impose their particular sectarian religious beliefs on women?s reproductive rights, and it is much the same with fundamentalist Protestants and civil and secular marriage- as well as the beliefs of those Christians, secularists and members of other faiths which are more inclusive than they are.

?

In order for there to be optimal freedom of and from religion, faith/state seperation needs to be firmly in place. The Marriage Equality Bill recognises that.

?

Postscript: But hey, what was that about religious tolerance and respect for diversity again? Let?s see what Aussie Christian Right misanthrope Bill (Beardie Weirdie) Muehlenberg has to say about this?:

?

There you go: one-world religion to match a one-world government. Everything the enemies of biblical Christianity have ever wished for. Destroy any differences and enforce a dumbed-down uniformity of beliefs and practices. Forget the uniqueness of Jesus Christ. Forget the truth claims of Christianity. Forget the many warnings about concentrated power corrupting absolutely.

This guy is just an utterly deluded secular humanist who still wears a collar. He is a wolf who has denied the very heart of biblical Christianity, and has proven that heretics and apostates are running riot in our churches. Why his church allows him to remain, spewing out this poison, is beyond me.

Source: http://www.gaynz.com/blogs/redqueen/?p=1910

jason russell norfolk state st patrick s day parade duke invisible children garbage pail kids st bonaventure