Respect for Marriage Act would repeal Defense of Marriage Act

The Respect for Marriage Act is sure to bring a veritable hailstorm of criticism and outrage from the conservatives of the country.  I don’t think the conservatives of the country are stupid,  yet the arguments I’ve seen against same sex marriage make little sense to me and I daresay most liberals.  Obviously claiming that same sex marriage in some way effects heterosexual marriage is a false claim and makes absolutely no sense whatsoever.  So, I went looking for the other arguments against same sex marriage.

Arguments Against Gay Marriage

There are, according to Dr. James Dobson, a host of reasons why gay marriage should be opposed but the one that stunned me was this:

Perhaps most important, the spread of the Gospel of Jesus Christ will be severely curtailed. The family has been God’s primary vehicle for evangelism since the beginning.Its most important assignment has been the propagation of the human race and the handing down of the faith to our children. That responsibility to teach the next generation will never recover from the loss of committed, God-fearing families. SOURCE

Since this is the most important problem according to James Dobson, this is the argument I want to address.  I would have to say that divorce is the number one reason for the fracture of the family.  Christians of all denominations divorce at a higher rate than do atheists. ¹   To suggest that propagation of the human race is a Christian’s most important assignment is false.  The “Great Commission” issued in the New Testament is found in the book of Matthew and it is from Jesus himself:   And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen. (Matthew 28:18-20)

Nowhere does the New Testament suggest that making babies is the number one priority of Christians.  If Godly families are of such great importance to Christians and Conservatives why is it that red states have a divorce rate 27% higher than that of the bastion of liberalism blue states?²  I would suggest that Christians focus on strengthening the existing heterosexual marriages in their churches instead of focusing on the bogeyman of gay marriages.

One other argument from Dobson worth mentioning is the idea that gay marriage will increase the demand for and lead to polygamy.  That argument baffles me considering in  it is those who claim to be Christians who engage in polygamy.  And it is the Old Testament that Dobson loves to refer to when it suits  him that gives many examples of polygamy engaged in by Godly men:

The first instance of polygamy/bigamy in the Bible was that of Lamech in Genesis 4:19: “Lamech married two women.” Several prominent men in the Old Testament were polygamists. Abraham, Jacob, David, Solomon, and others all had multiple wives. In 2 Samuel 12:8, God, speaking through the prophet Nathan, said that if David’s wives and concubines were not enough, He would have given David even more. Solomon had 700 wives and 300 concubines (essentially wives of a lower status), according to 1 Kings 11:3. ³

Think about that.  Dobson uses the Old Testament to substantiate his claim that the Christian assignment is to procreate and then turns around and condemns polygamy which is prevalent throughout the Old Testament.  Is it hypocrisy, ignorance, or just blatant cherry picking of scripture to support his position?

Law not Religion

The fact that scripture can be used in many ways to support many different positions is exactly why I do not believe our laws should be based on religion….any religion.  I believe laws should be based on the Constitution of the United States….that IS why it was written.

We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

We the People of the United States is inclusive and in no way discriminates against homosexuals who seek the Blessings of Liberty to live in a manner consistent with their pursuit of life, liberty and happiness.  Who are we….any of us….to declare them less than we are based on their sexuality?

Respect for Marriage Act introduced in House
Passage would repeal DOMA
From Washington Blade staff reports
Sep 15 2009, 11:46 AM

The Respect for Marriage Act, which, if passed, would repeal the Defense of Marriage Act, which was signed into law in 1996, was introduced in the House today.

Reps. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), Chair of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), and Jared Polis (D-Colo.) are the lead co-sponsors of the measure along with Reps. John Lewis (D-Ga.) and Nydia Velazquez (D-NY).

The bill would also provide same-sex couples with federal benefits and protections from a valid marriage from a state where same-sex marriages are legal if the couple moves or travels to another state, according to the Human Rights Campaign.

“DOMA does real harm by denying thousands of lawfully-married same-sex couples the federal rights and benefits that only flow through marriage. Many of these include the protections couples turn to in times of need, like Social Security survivors’ benefits, medical leave to care for an ailing spouse and equal treatment under U.S. immigration laws. Today’s introduction of legislation to repeal DOMA is a welcome step, and as more states recognize the commitment of loving same-sex couples and their families, it’s time for this law to go into the history books where it belongs,” said HRC President Joe Solmonese in a statement.

REST OF ARTICLE.