Letter submitted to the editor of the Defiance Crescent-News on July 13, 2015
Dear Editor,
Evangelical Christians are infuriated over the recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling legalizing same-sex marriage. Granting U.S. citizens equal protection under the law and affording them the same civil rights heterosexuals have is seen as an affront to God, the Bible, and true Christians everywhere. As a result, a handful of Christian government officials are refusing to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, claiming doing so would violate their religious beliefs.
Should government officials be required to violate their religious beliefs in the execution of their duties? They serve the public, and when they walk in the door of their respective place of duty, what God, the Bible, or their pastor has to say has no authority or relevance. The United States is a secular state, and the highest court in the land has determined that marriage laws discriminating against same-sex couples are unconstitutional. Every government official is duty bound to obey the law, and if they can’t they should either quit, be fired, or removed from office.
Evangelicals and their counterparts in the Catholic and Mormon church have at their disposal all the means necessary to undo same-sex marriage. If they feel the Court acted unjustly, the proper recourse is to work towards a constitutional amendment that establishes marriage as the union of one man and one woman. Empty threats of second amendment remedies, secession from the union, and Sodom and Gomorrah-like judgment from God change nothing. If Christians want real change, a return to Ozzie and Harriet’s 1950’s, then they should work to amend the Constitution. They won’t do this, of course, because they know they don’t have sufficient numbers to overturn the Supreme Court’s decision.
Why is it Christian government officials issue marriage licenses to adulterers and fornicators, but draw the line at same-sex couples? The Bible sure has a lot to say about adultery and fornication, yet these “sins” are routinely ignored. Only homosexuals and same-sex couples are singled out for discrimination and abuse. Why is this?
This question is not hard to answer. Having spent the first 50 years of my life in the Evangelical church, 25 years as a pastor, I know firsthand the rampant hysterical bigotry and homophobia within Evangelicalism. Evangelicals are now known as the religion of hate, and every time people like Franklin Graham, Tim Wildmon, Al Mohler, Ken Ham, or James Dobson open their mouth, the public is reminded of this fact.
Bruce Gerencser
Ney, Ohio
Haha!! Nice work, chief! I can’t WAIT to see their reaction!!
Great post Bruce. Funny how they pick and choose which sins to condem.
Can I access the Defiance Crescent News online? I would love to see the replies to this editorial.
They have a paywall. I will post the responses. Local fundamentalists (Evangelical, Catholic) have kind of given up on me. Their recent responses have been fewer in number. Am I winning? 🙂
My purpose in writing is to remind readers that not everyone is a Republican, right-wing, Evangelical. And maybe poke the bear…just a bit. 🙂
How’d that go over 😉
Oh, the bear always growls….which is good because it exposes the hatred behind the arguments.
Hi Bruce,
The last paragraph sums up pretty well the attitudes of the bulk of Evangelicals when it comes to the issues of same-sex marriage, homosexuality in general, and abortion. They exhibit their bigotry based on fear, and have a view of Christianity that does not maintain priority to their God being a of compassion, healing mercy and loving kindness when it comes to these ‘hot button’ issues for them.
They seem to be oblivious to the hate they demonstrate towards same-sex persons and they pretend that they are being loving by speaking the so-called “truth”. You need more people in your area to write to the editor of this paper in a similar fashion to you. However, I suppose that some pastors and others, who live in NW Ohio, are frightened to do so for fear of losing their jobs, given that this area is a hotbed for Fundamentalism.
Please do write the hostile responses to your letter on your website, so that we can respond. Thanks for your courage, Bruce.
Shalom,
John Arthur
The Christian obsession with homosexuality is really getting old–especially when they know how supposedly each sin is weighted the same in God’s eyes. So yes, it is very hypocritical that they keep coming back to these issues or “sins” only and it will NEVER stop. Who cares about all the other “sins”?