Posted on 08/01/2003 1:24:18 PM PDT by yoe
This week's statements by President Bush and the Vatican, critical of homosexual marriage, have re-ignited the debate over morality and fairness. While the Vatican labels political support of same sex unions "gravely immoral," one Baptist minister says religious views about homosexuality are changing in the same way they changed about slavery, women preachers and Galileo's scientific theories.
Dan Avila, associate director for policy and research with the Massachusetts Catholic Conference, defended the Church's position while admitting that it is "counter-cultural."
The Church teaches that marriage, defined as an exclusive and indissoluble union between one man and one woman, is a natural and divinely ordained institution. Same-sex unions are antithetical to this, Avila said.
"The Vatican certainly approaches this from a perspective of 'What is sex for?' and quite clearly, the Catholic Church's position on this is counter-cultural in urging that sex is for the purpose of bringing men and women together and for its pro-creative potential," Avila said.
The Vatican urged Catholics and non-Catholics alike Thursday to oppose efforts to establish same-sex marriage and homosexual adoptions.
The document, "Considerations Regarding Proposals to Give Legal Recognition to Unions Between Homosexual Persons," also stated that Catholic politicians should vote against laws granting recognition of homosexual unions.
"There are absolutely no grounds for considering homosexual unions to be in any way similar or even remotely analogous to God's plan for marriage and family," the document stated.
Mary Shivanandan, a professor of theology with the John Paul II Institute in Washington, agreed that marriage was "about engaging in acts that are potentially pro-creative."
"Matrimony," from the Latin - which predates Christianity - comes from the word, "the duty of motherhood," and homosexual acts "are by their very nature not pro-creative, so there is no way that you can equate marriage with what the homosexuals want to call marriage," Shivanandan said.
"The Vatican also stated - and this is very important - that as persons, those who have homosexual orientations must always be respected in their basic humanity. But marriage is incompatible by its very nature with homosexual acts," she added.
In describing homosexual conduct as sinful, the Vatican is reaffirming what had been in the past a unanimous understanding of the significance of sex, Avila said.
"There was at one time unanimity, especially among the religions in the Western world, that sex had a special place in the family and in the creation of new generations and therefore had special responsibilities associated with that," Avila said.
However, "the push for gay marriage or for legitimization of homosexual conduct outside the marital context, outside any context with association to the creation of new generations means that we're moving farther away from what we once understood as the original vision of sexuality," he added.
But supporters of same-sex marriage said the acceptance of homosexuality is taking place in the churches as it is in society.
Baptist Rev. Steven Baines, a senior organizer for religious affairs with People for the American Way, said the views of religious people on same-sex marriage would change as they did with other famously contentious issues. He mentioned slavery, women preachers and Galileo's scientific theories as examples.
"Religious views are the last to change, but they do change over the course of time," Baines said.
Polls have shown that people who consider themselves religious are moving toward greater acceptance of homosexuality. The culture is more accepting of homosexuals, as evidenced by homosexual characters on TV shows and in sports, he said.
Marianne Duddy, executive director of Dignity USA, a homosexual pressure group in the Catholic Church, also said acceptance of homosexuality is growing. "I do believe that our Church is one where the tradition grows and changes and evolves over time, and I expect that we will see changes. They may be slow to come, but they will be," she said.
How to crack the "doctrinal nut" that condemns homosexual behavior is a different issue, Duddy said.
"Not only the gay and lesbian community, but theologians and ethicists are all helping to shape the information that's out there and accessible to Catholics and to bishops and others who are working on this," she said.
(Excerpt) Read more at cnsnews.com ...
That's what I'm talkin' 'bout!
A better question would be "what's right with it?
The penis serves several useful purposes neither of which is shoving it up another's anus.
Keep it up homosexuals. AIDs was a subtle warning.
I am sick of hearing about the filthy homo degernerates.
They swim in fecal matter. They are up to their eyeballs in scarlet fever and aids because they eat other mens poop. yuck! It seems to nasty to even talk about yet they actually do it.
A marriage between two people of the same sex is nothing more than a game to them that gets um benefits (monetary) and forces others to accept that homosexuals deserve the same privilege of marriage that heterosexuals do.
What is the honest to GOD number of homosexuals in our society. According to the last census-it is 3%. This dictatorial minority is probably engaged in the sickest hoax ever perpetuated upon this nation.
Homosexuals should not ever be allowed to destroy the specialness of marriage-which is a contract between a man and a woman. A real man and a real woman, not two same sex addicted homosexuals who have to pretend that one is the woman and one is the man during sex.
And no amount of societal acceptance will gain them what they really crave - for God to wink at their sin, pat them on the back and say it's all just grand.
Some reaaaal morally equivilancy here all right....
Homosexuality equated with the moral evil of slavery.....
Homosexuality equated with the struggle for womens equality....
Homosexuality equated with the pure factual righteousness of Galileo vs the wrong scholars of his day...
BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
The right of Sodomites & their "recepticles" to illiminate health care for working familes...
thats OK..It will give the dems an issue that the media will blame on conservatives & of course Hillary care will take care of us...
OH BOY health care like England's....
Beware of greeks bearing straws :)
You can't tell truth with a clock, Rev. Baines. God's plan for marriage does not "evolve." If your religious view on this changes you were either wrong before, or you're wrong now.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.