As a Democrat and as a Christian, it's been getting scarier by the day to read the latest hatefest that has become the fight against California's Proposition 8. Although I am 100% against Prop 8, I am dismayed at the bigotry, ignorance and disdain that hallmarks this issue from some of my fellow democrats. Beware. It is this ignorant, self-righteous disdain against religion which grew the right's very ability to build an angry religious coalition in the 80s/90s, that continues to threaten our grassroots legitimacy as a party and sadly, stands in the way of the successful fruition of equal living rights for the GLBT community.
I know I'm going to get a lot of shit for this diary, but I feel like some basic truths (as I see them, of course) need to be articulated.
I've really had to ask myself what my dog is in this hunt... and it wasn't apparent at the jump that I had one. Besides the fact I'm not gay, and for whatever reason, my gay friends and I haven't been talking about this at all, moreover, my religion isn't exactly worn on my sleeve, and these past 8 years of radical right repugnance have wreaked total havoc on what fragile faith I possess.
But this issue has awakened an old personal injury which turned me away from the democratic party in the 90s - the insufferable, self-righteous, ridiculing, ignorant, condescending hate toward (let's get real, the Christian) religion that a lot of the left seems to have no problem displaying. Actually, KO's special comment yesterday took me over the top and propelled me to write; the total ignorance and dismissal of what my faith entails is infuriating, and the assumption that either I am following the will of my God of Love, or I am for Proposition 8, is insulting.
It is my contention that - until the left in general and the GLBT community specifically can come to accept the realities of Christianity, and until they conclude that a fundamental base level of respect is a two-way street - nothing will change, and our party will suffer as a result.
The problem, as I see it, is the term. Marriage. Regardless of its history in civil law (which I have been lectured on plenty), the fact of our society is, for Christians, it is largely considered a sacrament - i.e., sacred. There aren't very many sacraments - the Catholic Church has 7, protestants differ - but marriage is among the most important holy rituals the Christian church performs.
I could recite the parts of the Bible which describe homosexuality as an abomination, but why. We all know there's plenty negative in the Bible on the practice. There are a lot of prohibitions in the Bible that the overall Christian society interprets as having historical, rather than spiritual significance, but homosexuality generally isn't one of them. But here is where sects come in, from the most literal of interpretations on many points to the least - from the most evangelical to very tolerant sects like the United Church of Christ, followed by other more deist than Christian sects, there is a continuum that can probably generally be measured by this issue - or at least, it's as good as any.
But to ask most any person to ignore the fact of their religious beliefs in order to effect a political result is the height of ignorance, intolerance, self-centeredness and is simply absurd; damning them for not doing so is that much more so. It's got to stop. We have to find another way. And I fear every day we continue down this path we are alienating more good people who frankly need us as much as we need them, to turn this country around.
It is my contention that the term "marriage" needs to be removed from government/civil lexicon and replaced with a term that encompasses the intent - for any set of adults who wish to enter into a lifelong contract involving property and other certain family rights. And whatever rights which are granted on a bias currently to married couples which are not afforded non-married couples, or for that matter, individuals, needs to be abolished. Government shouldn't be in the business of advocating lifestyle through discriminatorily advantageous rights.
It is only then that the term marriage can be defined solely by religious entities, putting them in control of who they are able to marry (a huge fear among many Christians, is that same-sex marriage laws will dictate to churches that they must marry homosexuals against their beliefs). There are legitimate Christian sects willing to perform gay marriages and would continue to; all civil unions would be created equal, and we could move on as together or separate as we want to be.
I see a change in civil lexicon also as a way to defang the religious right; the fact that it has been made into a charged term is their very deliberate doing, in order to divide and conquer politically. Doing this will give them no room to politically discuss the topic. This takes away even the appearance of a threat that this faction has deceptively described as the government seeking to actively destroy the Christian religion (another fear they've been successful at breeding in many areas of the Christian community).
Lastly, an aspect that I think bears discussing - and that is the insistence on societal acceptance of homosexuality. It may be our wish, but it is not our right. I believe more tolerance can come from - shock - exhibiting tolerance. But there is no exhibiting tolerance when there is no understanding for the rock/hard place Christians are with regard to this issue, let alone ignoring the political hay the radical right has made out of it for the past two decades in a deliberate ploy to divide americans from each other. Let's face it, it's worked - so now what? Will matching ignorance for ignorance prevail? Do we as a party want to deride all Christians (or for consistency's sake, deride religion in general), instead of accepting the fact religious people exist whose holy book damns homosexual acts, and we have to deal with them where they are? Faith governs peoples' lives - regardless of the object of that faith, be it a God or a concept. It is hardly malleable.
I ask that anyone I have described take a step back and consider what you're asking people to do by way of this issue, and why it has been impossible to date. You are asking them to ignore their faith. That won't work. It is only in an atmosphere where all faith (and the lack thereof) is respected that a solution will come - nothing short will do.