You're
probably aware that the Supreme Court is hearing cases on the
constitutionality of laws defining marriage as a relationship between a
man and a woman. You've probably also heard talking
heads
insist that public opinion has shifted, that same-sex marriage is
inevitable, and 50 years from now everyone will wonder what the big deal
was.
This
is for those of you who may be a bit unsettled by all of it. You're not
crazy. The world may be going mad, but not for the first time. In the
words of the apostle Paul, "professing to be wise they became fools."
To better understand what's going on, re-read the story of the Emperor's New Clothes.
When the crowd is gathered and the emotions are highest, that is the
moment at which the peer pressure is greatest. Only the child, who was
unaware of the peer pressure, had the courage to state the obvious.
The
path of least resistance is to go along to get along. That's why so
many people choose it. But you just can't make yourself do it. It isn't
so much about being true to yourself as it is about being true to what
is true. You anchored yourself to the concept of truth, which means
that not every idea is brilliant. It isn't that you have a personal
vendetta against those that disagree, you just recognize that if nothing
is true, then everything is true...which is completely unworkable.
Over
time, you came to be thankful for the fact that, by virtue of having an
anchor, there were some places you couldn't go and some ideas you
couldn't embrace. It has actually saved you a lot of trouble. But now
everyone is so angry about it.
If you sympathize with this sentiment, let's remind ourselves of why we have an anchor at all.
We
don't make the rules. Sure we can decide speed limits and tax rates,
but with respect to the laws of the universe, we are subject, not lord.
We may not like them, but we cannot change them.
We
could pass a law banning gravity because it discriminates against
wingless creatures, but the moment we launched ourselves off a building
to celebrate our independence from it we would simply reinforce the
limits of our legislative authority.
Natural
marriage flows from the laws of nature. It is not a uniquely valuable
relationship because people gathered in their caves eons ago and
launched a campaign to stigmatize people attracted to the same sex.
Marriage between a man and a woman is uniquely valuable because we are a
gendered species. It is a biological reality that every child has a
mom and dad. The fact that it is ideal for children to have both
parents in their lives flows from nature, not from hatred of
non-parents. For those who are offended by this reality, their issue is
not with you.
The
ideas that parents are interchangeable will not survive because it
cannot survive. It cannot survive because it is inconsistent with
reality. Fathers cannot mother, and mothers cannot father.
Truth
is not concerned with or affected by our preferences. I may find it
inconvenient that I cannot eat only corn dogs and expect to be healthy.
Even if I framed my body's need for vitamins and minerals as
discrimination and intolerance of my tongues orientation, and even if I
convinced many to join my protest, my heart attack would not care. Nor
would it care that my intentions were good. My body was designed in a
way that I cannot control or change. It is in my best interest to
accept it rather than fight it.
For
those of us who live life with an anchor, we have done so, in part,
because we understand that we cannot trust our feelings. They are, by
definition, unreliable. The ability to analyze what is true despite how
we feel is part of what separates us from animals.
The
other thing about feelings...they go away. Whether you're motivated,
joyful, or angry, no feeling lasts forever. If your conclusions about
what is true are determined by your feelings, your view of reality will
constantly change. This also explains why support for same-sex
"marriage", such as it is, cannot last.
Never mind the fact that nearly every poll ever taken has wildly overstated real
support for redefining marriage, the fact that a fevered emotional
climate with intense social pressure to conform or be ostracized was
necessary to gain support for their position also guarantees its
collapse.
The
cultural infatuation with everything gay will not last forever. When
the emotional leverage is gone, they'll have to argue for the benefits
of a genderless world with interchangeable parents on the merits. Good
luck with that.
If
you feel anxiety about all of this, please try to relax. Don't stop
caring and don't stop working. There is much pain to be averted by being
as close to truth as possible, and each of us plays a critical role in
that struggle. But don't ever be concerned that this battle is lost
forever.
The
idea that 500 years from now, civilizations will see this as the moment
in human history when everyone came together and realized you could do
whatever you wanted with whomever you wanted and it didn't matter so
long as everyone consented and had good intentions is fantasy.
We
are not the first people to be asked to conform to intense social
pressure, nor will we be the last. But hopefully we will provide a
great example to the next generation of grace under fire and the benefit
of having an anchor.
You
may be on the wrong side of the peer pressure, depending on the group
you're with or the channel you're watching, but you're not on the wrong
side of history.
Time obliterates the fictions of opinion and confirms the decisions of nature. ~Marcus Tullius Cicero
2 comments:
The REAL bullies: http://www.conservativeactionalerts.com/2013/03/real-bullies-the-homosexuality-is-normal-movement/
Father in heaven, The SCOTUS has now most likely heard all the arguments on the Marriage issue and must now make a ruling of some kind in the next weeks or months. It is disheartening to see almost ALL of the reports on this story in the media weighing in - in favor of abolishing DOMA. Oh God, help the justices to see that the definition of marriage was settled thousands of years ago and those that want to have a same-sex partnership today may choose to go that way but it would never change the historical meaning of marriage. States can give can give same sex relationships special privileges if they will but it still does not change the fact that historical marriage is for one man and one woman. It seems so simple. Have mercy on us as a nation and keep us in the way of truth and righteousness. In His name I pray, AMEN.
Post a Comment