25.6.08

mormons join the fray

So the Mormons are wading into the fray surrounding gay marriage in California. They’ll join a coalition of churches and “other conservative groups” in pushing for the passage of the “California Marriage Protection Act,” which would amend California’s constitution to define marriage as being solely the union of a man and a woman.

But a group of gay and lesbian Mormons called Affirmation is rejecting the Mormon church’s political action, rightly calling it “interference.” Affirmation’s executive committee phrased it well in a statement to California Mormons:

“As Mormons, we believe that respect for civil law and acknowledgment of individual freedoms is sacred. The California law affects civil marriage; it has no effect on any religious institution or religious official. To seek to revoke these basic protections in the name of God denies the fundamental freedoms on which our country was built. Constitutional law has always been about protecting civil and religious freedoms, not the denial of those freedoms.

We urge California voters to act in favor of freedom. Vow to Vote No.”

The key word is freedom. Freedom to live. Freedom to love. Freedom to marry. With a government defined as being by the people and for the people, using government to tell individuals who they can or cannot marry is contrary to valuing freedom. And Affirmation is absolutely correct in pointing out that this is a civil matter, not about how private religious institutions handle their own affairs. No one is telling churches what to do.

This is a as good a time as any to hint at a activist project I’m hoping to launch once I know what the amendment’s proposition number is. I (tentatively) call it the Always Choose Love Initiative, and it’ll be my way of raging a guerilla campaign to let people know what’s really at stake with the so-called California Marriage Protection Act: true love and meaningful freedom. Stay tuned!

BTW, here’s the official text of the proposed amendment – a lonely line prefaced by several letters. And here is a listing of the propositions slated for November 4.

1 comment:

Nick said...

I agree with you when you talk about freedom. I think when law is based on religious ideas that is where I start to draw the line. Laws should be for everyone not just for certain beliefs. Relationships are defined by whatever people wish them to be. We are too caught up in the idea that we need to be man and women to have a loving relationship. I know several gay people who are far more loving and caring than most couples I’ve met. Do they not deserve to have the same rights as all of us? As for another topic similar to this one, try this on for size. http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,23924352-421,00.html