Gay marriage and Christianity

I have something I would like to say about gay marriage and religion. I'd put it on Facebook, but there are some pretty polarized people I'm friends with on Facebook and that could lead to some serious fighting that I don't want to have overshadow the original idea. This means that I'll put it here where no one will see it, even though anyone could see this if they wanted to.

First, let me put some history here, just in case this blog works out for me like Emily Dickinson's poems did for her. I am a Christian by most accepted definitions. I'm a member of the United Methodist Church which is popularly accepted as being more liberal than the Catholics or the Baptists, or other denominations. What most people don't know is that the official stance of the United Methodist Church is against gay marriage.

Now, I think that the strict Christian people need to relax on this decision. It does not affect our decisions as Christians whether gays can have a legally binding marriage or not. The Christian churches aren't being told that they have to cater to gays seeking to get married in religious settings. There is a separation of Church and State in this country and this is one of the reasons that it is the way it is.

I know that it makes you people uncomfortable, but it's not your life to live. If you want to know what happens to people who try to live their lives through other people, or control as much of their lives as possible, watch Toddlers and Tiaras, or any of those reality TV shows that follow people around who just try to control each other and throw tantrums like toddlers when they don't get their way. Let me give you a hint, it doesn't usually end well. Some of these children raised that way are unable to function in normal society. That's what's hurting our society, not gays getting the right to have legally binding marriages.

This is still America, it's not so different as when women got the right to vote, or inter-racial couples got the rights just now given to the gay community. We look back on those moments now, and see how obdurate the people were, but we do not get the full reflection showing us that we are just as obdurate about this change. We have come very far, but have not gone a long way.