American Beer Party – Marriage Equality

Marriage equality is a topic that produces opponents within families, groups, communities, states and our nation in general. One of the more prominent well-known families is that of 2008 Republican presidential nominee John McCain. Senator McCain opposes marriage equality for all Americans. Wife Cindy and daughter Meghan support it.

To me, this sort of falls under things like "liberty and justice for all" and "all men are created equal" and the ever-popular, "why are you so worried about who someone else is married to?"

Senator McCain’s office felt it necessary to issue a statement and said,"Sen. McCain believes the sanctity of marriage is only defined as between one man and one woman".

I hear the words sanctity of marriage a lot, mostly when people want to condemn same-sex relationships. So I did a bit of research. The Evangelical Presbyterian Church issued a position paper. In it, they state:

• Marriage is a covenant between one man and one woman and between the participants and God (Malachi 2:14-16).
• God designed marriage to be a lifelong relationship. Jesus said, “What God has joined together, let not man separate (Mark 10:9).” The marriage covenant should be kept sacred and unbroken under those conditions stated in the Bible.
• God-ordained marriage should remain pure in thought, motive and practice. The seventh commandment prohibits adultery (Exodus 20:14). Jesus sets an even higher standard in his statement: “…anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery” (Matthew 5:27-28).
• Out of reverence for Christ as savior and lord of their marriages, Christian wives are to respect and subject themselves to their husbands as to the Lord. And Christian husbands are to love their wives even “as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her (Ephesians 5:22-26).”

I see a problem here. According to the EPC, a sanctified marriage is one between one man and one woman that lasts a lifetime in which there are no adulterous thoughts and in which wives subject themselves to their husbands and husbands love their wives as much as Jesus loved the church.

I’m thinking Senator John McCain should have done more reading before espousing the sanctity of marriage since he had an affair with Cindy in an adulterous relationship during his first marriage, which ended in divorce. He clearly fails the EPC guidelines, as do the majority of people in the world. Then again, the Senator’s statement said, "the sanctity of marriage is only defined as between one man and one woman" meaning you can throw out all that other stuff the EPC came up with. As long as the marriage is between one man and one woman, it’s sanctified, I guess.

In fact, the website Catholic.net states, "If someone is able to maintain this attitude throughout one’s married life, ‘I am only there for the other,’ this person becomes a saint." The article title is Sanctity of Marriage. So, if someone qualifies for sainthood by being able to have a sanctified marriage, I’m guessing very few are able to do so.

What is Marriage, Really?

In the United States, marriage is a contract as evidenced by a license signed by both parties, witnesses and the person who performed the ceremony. The contract (license) is filed with a local governing authority, making it a legal document, and making the marriage relationship one that is governed by laws. To get out of the marriage contract, one of the parties must do so by using the court system.

Well, we’ve heard from the religionists and the legal system, but what about the anti-religionists? The website Atheist Heaven promotes itself as, "Propagating Reason, Rationality and Common Sense in the face of Religious Dogmatism." As you might expect, there is an article entitled, The Sanctity of Marriage?, the gist of which is this: "If history and modern trend is of any guide, this utopia version of marriage is so totally screwed."

Should Marriage Equality be Applied to All United States Citizens?

Yes. Forget, for a moment, about religion and the legal system. Marriage is far more. It is a covenant of love. Love is a thought, a spiritual feeling that cannot be regulated by anyone. I love someone because… I want to spend my life with someone because… I want to be the cherry on top of that person’s sundae because… I want to be the olive in that person’s martini because… The strings of the heart that draw two people together cannot be seen but they can be felt. However, they can be felt only by those two people. It is the spiritual feeling between two people that provides sanctity to the relationship. Who am I to say, You cannot feel that way for that particular person because I don’t believe it’s right?

This is just one of many rants and raves that will become The American Beer Party Movement. The original article can be found at that link. You might be interested in American Beer Party Movement – Supreme Court Debacle.

To learn more about Cindy McCain’s involvement, you can visit NOH8. The photo above is from that site, and I’m grateful for being allowed to use it.