Is allowing gay marriage an issue of fairness? Or is it an issue of giving preferential treatment to a class of citizens?
In the Wall Street Journal today there is an interesting opinion piece tackling this topic. First my opinion: Homosexuals are not discriminated against. They are allowed to marry just as you and I are; heterosexuals do not have the option of marrying someone of the same sex either, which removes discrimination from the equation.
Mary Ann Glendon takes this a step further and points out that Massachusetts (among other states) is cutting benefits to the elderly and poor while extending benefits to homosexual couples. She argues that heterosexual marriage has an inherent benefit to society (production of children) and should, therefore, receive extra benefits.
But I’m even happier about her next issue: Children. She argues that the purpose of marriage is children (the ones who benefit the most) and same-sex marriages are inherently harmful to kids. Thank you, Ms. Glendon.
This will be the debate in America over the next few months or years, probably. As Catholics we need to stand firm with the Church and support a constitutional amendment defining marriage as being between one woman and one man. I’m glad to see the President has announced his intentions to push this.
The OpinionJournal article requires registration, but the article is worth it.
God bless,
Jay
Thank you Ms. Glendon!!!
A very thought-out article. What I like about it (ironically) is that it doesn't give the arguement from a purely religious point of view. Unfortunately, many people believe that those who are against same-sex 'marriage' (or abortion, etc...) are simply brain-washed religious fanatics. These people effectively close their ears (and often laugh, scoff, go on a tirade about relativitistic morality, etc...) once the mention of God or religion or morality is made. This article emphasizes that there are profound philosophical, sociological, psychological, etc reasons why same-sex 'marriage' is not in the best interest of a society. THIS SO NEEDS TO BE HEARD, especially by people who are likely to scoff at religious belief. A big THANK YOU to Ms. Glendon, and maybe through articles and media such as this, people may stop to think about WHY religions (most notably the Catholic Church) make the claims they do, and that there is wisdom in what they say.
Nickie.