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An Open
Letter to George W. Bush
March 1, 2004
THE "MARRIAGE
AMENDMENT"
Your advocacy of
a "marriage amendment" is ill-advised, confused, uninformed, wrong-headed,
invidious, politically-inspired, and contrary to the spirit of Christ.
It’s ill-advised because preventing committed couples of the same sex from
marrying each other will do nothing to protect marriage. (Adequate income,
good health care, and educational opportunity might do more to promote its
stability.)
It’s confused because the U.S. constitution isn’t a religious document, yet
you speak of "codifying" marriage because it is a "sacrament" and a "sacred
covenant."
It’s uninformed because it takes no account of scientific studies into human
differences, evidence of healthy child-rearing in non-heterosexual families,
the history of how mores evolve within society, and because it accepts a
"Biblical morality" which is ignorant of much responsible Biblical
scholarship.
It’s wrong-headed because, with so much terrorism and hate in the world, it
makes no sense to spend energy punishing people for loving each other.
It’s invidious because it would create two classes of people in our country,
separate but not equal.
It’s politically-inspired. Need I comment on this?
It’s contrary to the spirit of Christ. I don’t write of this because I
believe the constitution should be based on a given religious tradition, but
because you and I–as Christians–believe our faith should impact how we carry
out our secular and civic calling. Isn’t the thrust of Christ’s life and
teaching inclusive and accepting rather than exclusionary and judgmental?
The following open letter was
published by the Rev. Dale Edmondson who is currently serving as the Interim
Minister at First Baptist Church, Oakland. Dale has kindly given permission
to post it on the Internet. |
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