In the not-so-distant future, gays will be able to marry in any courthouse and many progressive churches across the land. Hold outs, like the Catholics, we be able to deny gay ceremonies within their church. The gay rights wave will likely have enough momentum to brand this as the kind of discrimination that is no longer allowed outside of the umbrella of religious freedom. While a popular reception hall owned by a Catholic businessman will not be able to turn away paying homosexual newlyweds anymore than an office can stop a woman’s progress up the corporate ladder on account of her gender, a church can refuse to wed gays as easily as they can prohibit women from going into the priesthood. Religious freedom trumps discrimination in the eyes of the law, but in public opinion? That’s a different story. As the exceptions for the Church’s otherwise illegal actions continue to mount, I see their congregations continuing to shrink and their leadership continuing to bend. Eventually, a Pope will finally agree to give his blessing to gay marriage, overruling biblical text as they’ve done in the past.
At this point, the church will be two-fold weaker. The delay in their decision will have diluted their numbers and the decision itself will have diluted their relevance. There will be the usual sects that break off to maintain their conservative (read backward) views, but they will become the mocked fringe in a culture that has moved on. Outside of the self-hatred of closeted religious homosexuals, I think fear of this scenario is the central cause of the disproportionate outrage over gay marriage. They don’t fear for the souls of gay sinners so much as for their own lost legitimacy.
I think the Catholics will change their stance when the masses in Africa and South America have a higher standard of living, and realize that barbarism is not a viable philosophy.
ReplyDeleteHomophobia has cost them many people from the younger generations of their churches, but they keep doubling down on it anyway.
ReplyDeleteI think what they're scared of is that when gay marriage becomes the norm, all of their predictions about it will be proven wrong. Pedophiles will still be hated and imprisoned, people won't be allowed to legally marry their German Shepherd, etc...
Once those lies are proven wrong, then that will lead to even more doubters in fundamentalist circles, and more will love the faith.
Love the faith or leave the faith?
DeleteThis is a really good point, I never really thought about there true reasons for being so against it, but this sounds pretty reasonable to me.
ReplyDeleteInteresting points, especially as to emotional investments. Add in commitments based in Natural Law (without claiming any special knowledge) as this is a main source of Catholic positions on what Nature 'intends' - overlooking that is exactly Nature that produces the various orientations... so one would think we need further principles (such as social equality) to determine how to judge natural behaviors. I'm glad you are writing again!
ReplyDeleteBTW, I don't agree the Catholic church's position on same-sex marriage is likely to change anytime soon. It took the Catholic church 350 years to officially reverse itself on Galileo. Peace
DeleteI'm not expecting it anytime soon. :-)
DeleteAnd thanks, I'm glad I'm writing again too.
I bet in 10 or 20 years when some churches finally accept gay marriage, they'll adopt the position that gay sex will *only* be allowed within a gay marriage, just as they believe with heterosexual marriages, and thus they'll do a 180 degree turn on their position now.
ReplyDeleteI guess gay sex outside of marriage is currently living in sin squared.
DeleteFOR GAYS ONLY: Jesus predicted that just before His return as Judge, there will be a strange, spontaneous, mind-twisting fad - a global steamroller notable for its speed, boldness, violence, and impudent in-your-face openness. In Luke 17 He called this worldwide craze the repeat of the "days of Lot" (see Genesis 19 for details). By helping to fulfill this worldwide mania quietly coordinated by unseen spirit beings, gays are actually hurrying up Christ's return to earth and making the Bible even more believable!
ReplyDeleteThey've actually invented strange architecture: closets opening not on to bedrooms but on to Main Streets where kids can see naked men having sex in "Madam" Nancy Pelosi's San Francisco Brothel District. We wonder how soon S.F.'s underground saint - San Andreas - will get a 10-point jolt out of what goes on over his head (see the dire prediction about cities in Revelation 16:19)!
What's really scary is the "reprobate mind" phrase in Romans 1:28. A person can sear his conscience so much God turns him over to S, the universal leader of evil who can turn such a person into Mr. Possessed with a super-human strength that many cops together have trouble restraining.
Remember, gays don't have to stay bound to their slavery. Their emancipation is found in a 5-letter name starting with J - no, not James or Julia. As soon as they can find out the all-powerful J name, gays will really start living!
[I'm Shannon and saw the above article on the web.]
Yeah, uh huh.
DeleteI agree with you, though will the Catholic church remain that long to change their position on gay relationships? My personal view point is that those that speak out the loudest against gay relationships are most likely suppressing their own instincts. Where the catholic church is concerned, men who take the cloth are renouncing their own intimate involvement what has been accepted in society until now as the 'traditional' man and woman relationship. This type of relationship isn't something they are interested in to begin with. Once society in general accepts that any type of relationship between the same species is actually normal behaviour (we see this in the animal kingdom, especially those animals which we call cousins and we can't deny that we belong to the animal kingdom either particularly when our DNA is so similar), then its likely those who have been brought up or brainwashed to believe that such behaviour is "unacceptable" will break from the cloth. Its possible the catholic church and other similar institutions that might still attempt to challenge nature will dissolve much faster as people lose 'faith'. They won't have the same numbers amongst their clergy or support from a congregation, unless they attempt to evolve with society. Already in the last few years, the catholic church has changed its stance on issues such as babies going to limbo. (Where is the stone tablet!? Or at least a text message if this god has entered the current age.) Eventually the lambs and sheep will finally begin to see the clergy and pope as dressed up mutton pretending to be the shepherds of a non existent god and a phony religion created by their ancestors bent on controlling the minds and desires of humans for their own power.
ReplyDeleteGood point about the priesthood being a self-selecting group that isn't that into hetero-sex. Mostly agree.
DeleteI like your style! I find no photo that is over-exposed or underexposed. They are all well-made in my eyes and I am in awe!
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@Andrew Hall: Racist much? Not even touching Africa, do you realize South America has had a steadily increasing standard of living for a while now, and that Argentina--the country of the Pope--legalized gay marriage?
ReplyDelete"As the exceptions for the Church’s otherwise illegal actions continue to mount, I see their congregations continuing to shrink and their leadership continuing to bend. Eventually, a Pope will finally agree to give his blessing to gay marriage, overruling biblical text as they’ve done in the past."
ReplyDeleteI dunno, Grundy. While I wholeheartedly agree that their congregations will shrink as a result of their intolerance, I doubt that the Catholic church will change its doctrines soon. They refuse to budge on contraception, premarital sex, or female priests, despite public opinion, so I don't see them taking an enlightened stance on same-sex marriage. Decades from now, the Catholic church will still be living in the dark ages as its members flee and society moves on.
If I'm wrong, though, I'll be relieved.