So, here we are in Hawaii in the middle of a Special Legislative Session considering a same-sex marriage bill. I have been asked — a lot — “what do you think about all of this?”
I am certain my response will offend someone. ANY response on a divisive issue tends to offend someone. But I will try to be as transparent as possible and tell you what I think.
This is an issue in which my sociology sometimes collides with my theology. From a strictly sociological perspective I honestly don’t particularly care who loves whom, who has sex with whom, or what gender they are. Gay people exist, and they are not going away just because I/we find their predilections objectionable. I also, sociologically, think that as citizens, voters and taxpayers everyone deserves respect and fairness.
Surprised? You shouldn’t be. Many Christians I speak with share that view. Like me, they have gay friends, relatives and neighbors and they hold no ill-will toward them. Like me, they realize that their gay friends, relatives and neighbors are generally just trying to live their lives in peace.
My theology, on the other hand, holds that homosexuality, like may other things, is outside the plan of God and is (here comes that loaded word) sin. It is certainly not the only sin my theology holds objectionable, but it is the one that causes the most resentment toward the church. Nobody seems to say much when we preach and teach that dishonesty, drunkenness or infidelity is sin — and nobody accuses us of hating those involved in those sins, but at the first mention of gay = sin the cries of “HATER” begin. It’s ridiculous, but it happens. Often.
This is really, truly, not an issue of hate for anyone I know. It is an issue of the systematic dismantling of the societal structure we believe is best for the common good and — for those of us who are Christians — an unwillingness to normalize and legally sanction something we fear will invoke the righteous wrath of God. It is a slippery-slope issue of redefining words to fit the shifting trends of society. Marriage means something… or always has, and if we redefine that, other words will not be far behind. Already the APA, which once categorized homosexuality as a psychological disorder, has moved to redefine pedophilia as a sexual preference, and not a disorder. It is the latest move in the creeping incrementalism we have feared and warned against.
In just a few decades we have moved from “just leave us alone” to “fundamentally restructure society to accommodate 3% of the population.” It amazes me that so many people don’t see the problem with that. It is fraught with unintended consequences, and despite the warnings, our state is rushing headlong in the opening in pandora’s box.