Thu, 29. September 2011
Anti-Gay Bible-Shakers
A local newspaper, The Macarthur Advertiser, recently published an article about a young lesbian couple who were going to Thailand to get married, because of homophobic laws, here in Australia, preventing same-sex couples from getting married. What a sad indictment on politicians from both sides. Whether they are same-sex or opposite-sex couples is not the politicians business, nor is it the business of the narrow-minded people who are opposed to gay marriage. It is nobody's affair but the couples concerned. I commented on the article accordingly.
In response to my comment, I had a bible waved at me: "You can't change the definition of something just to suit yourself. It's biblical. It comes from God!" Well, that person is entitled to an opinion but I have noticed that people who piously wave their religious textbook in other people's faces can often be those with the least logical of minds and the hardest of hearts. They are also the most likely to pass sanctimonious judgements on others whose lifestyle may not exacly match theirs. Their morals are uncompromisingly rooted in the iron age scribblings of middle-eastern desert nomads and we can surely do better than that.
One respondee to the bible-waver said "The marriage act has been amended over time to include divorce, but I am not certain as to when they made that amendment in the bible?" - a very good point. I don't know if the bible explicitly forbids divorce (or gay marriage); and I don't really care, because the bible is irrelevant. The law can overide the bible (e.g. Sunday trading) and as time passes, people come to accept it, as they have with divorce.The law may be 'an ass' but it is far less of 'an ass' than the bible is! What is the point of insisting an unhappy marriage be held together, when those concerned could instead be allowed to get on with their lives separately? Similarly, what is the point in denying two happy people the right to come together and marry? I am glad to say that I have had 38 happy years of heterosexual marriage and it appalls me that some people take great delight in denying that same basic common right to people they don't know, based on their zealoted judgements of alternate sexual preferences.
Same-sex marriage will have zero impact on you or me, only on those directly involved. I hope our politicians will search their conscience and find it in their hearts to allow all Australians an equal right to marry. It won't be detrimental to others in any way, so if they are happy together, I can't see any logical reason to heard-heartedly oppose them marrying. I hope the Australian Parliament soon comes to the same conclusion.