Churches have
a long history of punishing anyone who isn’t perfect in every way. When
maybe, in the eyes of God, the worst sin of all is to not love, accept, honor,
respect, and include those who have no control over the conditions under which
they were born. Maybe marginalizing, rejecting, and ostracizing them is
grievous to God, especially when it leads to suicide.
Supreme Court
Ruling Makes Same-Sex Marriage a Right Nationwide
By Adam
Liptak JUNE 26, 2015
WASHINGTON —
In a long-sought victory for the gay rights movement, the Supreme Court ruled
by a 5-to-4 vote on Friday that the Constitution guarantees a right to
same-sex marriage.
“No longer may
this liberty be denied,” Justice Anthony M. Kennedy wrote for the majority in
the historic decision. “No union is more profound than marriage, for it
embodies the highest ideals of love, fidelity, devotion, sacrifice and family.
In forming a marital union, two people become something greater than once they
were.”
Marriage is a
“keystone of our social order,” Justice Kennedy said, adding that the
plaintiffs in the case were seeking “equal dignity in the eyes of the law.”
The decision,
which was the culmination of decades of litigation and activism, set off
jubilation and tearful embraces across the country, the first same-sex marriages in several states, and resistance — or
at least stalling — in others. It came against the backdrop of fast-moving
changes in public opinion, with polls indicating that most Americans now
approve of the unions.
As Justice
Kennedy finished announcing his opinion from the bench on Friday, several
lawyers seated in the bar section of the court’s gallery wiped away tears,
while others grinned and exchanged embraces.
Outside the
Supreme Court, the police allowed hundreds of people waving rainbow flags and
holding signs to advance onto the court plaza as those present for the decision
streamed down the steps. “Love has won,” the crowd chanted as courtroom
witnesses threw up their arms in victory.
In remarks in
the Rose Garden, President Obama welcomed the decision, saying it “affirms
what millions of Americans already believe in their hearts.”
“Today,” he
said, “we can say, in no uncertain terms, that we have made our union a little
more perfect.
SALT LAKE CITY
(ABC 4 Utah) In a historic decision, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled Friday that
gay and lesbian couples across the country have a constitutional right to
marry.
The Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints issued the following statement Friday:
"The
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints acknowledges that following today's
ruling by the Supreme Court, same-sex marriages are now legal in the United
States. The Court's decision does not alter the Lord's doctrine that marriage
is a union between a man and a woman ordained by God. While showing respect for
those who think differently, the Church will continue to teach and promote marriage
between a man and a woman as a central part of our doctrine and practice."
The Church has
outlined its doctrine and position on marriage in the document The Divine
Institution of Marriage.
Like religious
adherents across the nation, Utah faith groups were divided in their reactions
to Friday's Supreme Court ruling allowing same-sex marriage throughout the U.S.
— some were disappointed, others exhilarated.
Utah's two
largest religions, the predominant LDS Church and Salt Lake City's Catholic
Diocese, maintain that marriage is only between a man and a woman, and neither
church is about to bend its teachings or its opposition to gay marriage.
The high court
has jurisdiction in civil laws, but not over heavenly decrees, they argue, and
both faiths want to keep it that way.
"The
court's decision does not alter the Lord's doctrine that marriage is a union
between a man and a woman ordained by God," The Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints said in a news release. "While showing respect for those
who think differently, the church will continue to teach and promote marriage
between a man and a woman as a central part of our doctrine and practice."
Given the
Constitution's freedom-of-religion protections, enshrined in the First
Amendment, the ruling does not force churches to recognize same-sex marriages.
That means, of
course, that marriages performed in LDS temples will continue to be between
only faithful men and women. Mormons view such marriages as lasting for
eternity.
LDS leaders
teach that same-sex attraction is not a sin, only acting on it is.
Top Mormon
officials, including apostle D. Todd Christofferson, also have
said Latter-day Saints who support gay marriage are not in danger of
losing their church memberships or temple privileges.
The Salt Lake
City Diocese, which oversees Utah's 300,000-plus Catholics, said the court's
ruling does not end "the debate over the definition of marriage."
"As
Catholics, we seek to uphold our traditional belief in marriage as a sacrament,
a well established and divinely revealed covenant between one man and one
woman, a permanent and exclusive bond meant to provide a nurturing environment
for children and the fundamental building block to a just society," the
diocese said in a statement. "Although we respectfully disagree with those
who would define marriage otherwise, we firmly hold that all persons are loved
by our compassionate God and deserve the respect and dignity that is inherently
theirs as human beings."
Utah Catholics
"acknowledge the right of our nation's highest court to provide for a
well-ordered society," the statement added, "by establishing laws
that protect the common good and safeguard the civil and contractual rights and
privileges of its citizens."
At the same
time, however, the diocese urged Utah "lawmakers and judges to respect
those institutions that are beyond state and federal jurisdiction, institutions
such as sacramental marriage that transcend civil law and whose origins precede
the existence of the state and go beyond its competence."
Imam Muhammed
Mehtar, who leads services at the Khadeeja Islamic Center in West Valley City,
took much the same approach.
"It is
our duty to teach that which is good and refrain from that which is poor in choice,"
Mehtar said. "God wishes us to continue procreation for the sake of
sharing good, kind, loving values."
By that, the
imam means in "traditional" male-female led families.
Still, Muslims
live in a country "whose values are secular," Mehtar said. "In such
an environment, we feel that when individuals make choices that are contrary to
us, we will try to defend them, their safety and well-being. We will never say,
'Hurt gays and lesbians, or take away their rights, or that they are less human
than we are.' "
Muslims should
simply say, he explained, that "we have different values."
Other people
of faith cheered the ruling.
Why are
churches the last when they should be first for social and spiritual
justice? For acceptance of those who are different?
And I’m not
just talking about gays.
After an
incident that happened here last week, for us in our situation I feel:
I am not connected to humanity
I am an island
I stand alone
Where is
compassion? Love? Acceptance? Respect for the rights and privileges of those
who are different? Loving kindness?
“Though we are incomplete,
God loves us completely. Though we are imperfect, He loves us perfectly. Though
we may feel lost and without compass, God's love encompasses us completely. ...
He loves every one of us, even those who are flawed, rejected, awkward,
sorrowful, or broken.”― Dieter F.
Uchtdorf
Speaking of
sinners, my hearing aids have no church training. Right during the sacrament
prayer, they go “bing – bing – bing” then sing “Do – Re – Mi”.
Irreverent.
No comments:
Post a Comment