Editor's Column by Mike Richeson

Back to Table of Contents | Back to Main Index Previous Editor's Columns | Send mail to The Voice Homosexuals will not destroy marriage Just when you thought the gay rights movement couldn't reach a more fevered pitch, the summer of 2003 comes along. First, the Supreme Court ruled that homosexual sex is legal. Then the country endured another round of gay pride parades. Tens of thousands of homosexuals, including thousands in Portland, caroused through the streets with their in-your-face flaunting of sexual deviancy. Finally, the Episcopal Church (and I use the word "Church" very loosely here) admitted the first openly gay bishop. Undoubtedly, the church will split over that. Now the nation is embroiled in the battle over gay marriage. Gay men and women all over the United States are crossing their fingers in the hope that the rights of marriage will be extended to them as well. Christians and other Americans with any kind of moral compass, of course, oppose legalizing gay marriage. The fear is that gays will further destroy the sanctity of marriage and uproot the United States' familial foundation. Even President Bush has spoken out against gays being allowed legal marriage. I think all this crying and stamping of feet is misguided. Will marriage really be ruined by gay marriage? What's more, can anyone take an honest look at the state of today's family and say that marriage, as set up by God, still exists in the United States? Gays will have a hard time doing more damage to an institution that has already been derailed. Let's take a look at what marriage is. Genesis 3:24 states clearly, "For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh." Obviously, gays don't even fit the definition of marriage, not even if one of them puts on a dress. And anyone who has ever dusted off the Good Book knows that homosexuality is condemned. There is no gray area. The debate, especially among Christians, should be over. Ever since the swingin' '60s, the sanctity of marriage has declined in the United States. California introduced no-fault divorce, making breakups quick and supposedly less messy. The number of divorces immediately skyrocketed from 400,000 per year to 1,189,000 in the early 1980s. Now all 50 states have some type of no-fault divorce system. Proponents of easy divorce like to point out that the divorce rate has declined in the last decade. That's nice, but they fail to mention that marriage rates have also gone down. People are not getting married; they're just living together. Even Christians are falling into this lifestyle. And if you've ever been on the phones during an MBC fundraiser, you know many Christians are getting divorced. Today, marriage is nothing more than a convenient punch line for television shows. Fox, the greatest perpetrator in marriage bashing, has led the charge. Shows such as "Who Wants to Marry a Millionaire," "Who Wants to Marry my Dad," and this summer's hit, "Race to the Altar," all mock the sacred institution of marriage. You can even watch broken families duke it out and spill secrets on "Divorce Court." Societal values are pushing a message far from Christian-based values. Women are no longer encouraged to seek men of godly character but to find some sugar daddy who can take them to Saks Fifth Avenue in a fancy car and then turn them loose. Men no longer seek Proverbs 31 women but Botox bimbos with more silicone than brains who can perform when the lights go out. A small remnant of Christians still hold marriage as sacred and will pass along godly values to their children, but the hope of resuscitating marriage for the secular world is simply a false hope. Christians who wish to bemoan the state of marriage would do well to quit griping and start making a difference. Divorce must be curbed, and life-long marriage needs to be taught and encouraged in the church. Christians must take the reins in promoting strong, healthy marriages. Programs, from the nationwide Marriage Savers organization, to Dean Fessenden's marriage lab, should be applauded and expanded. Make no mistake. Before too long, homosexuals will be granted legal marriage in the United States, and the decision will be wrong. Homosexuals, however, will not destroy marriage; they will simply kick at a horse that is already dead. Back to Table of Contents | Back to Main Index Previous Editor's Columns | Top Of Page Send mail to The Voice| Journalism department website © 2003 The Voice. No part of this publication may be reproduced in written or electronic form without prior written consent from the journalism adviser of Multnomah Bible College. All rights reserved.