Dawn of a Dark Age

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Iowa and Vermont recently became the third and fourth states to legalize same-sex marriage in the U.S. In his April 10th blog entry, Albert Mohler asked, "Is Same-Sex Marriage Inevitable?" His answer: a resigned yes.

The tragic absence of moral clarity has catapulted 21st-century society into the abyss. Once de facto homosexual marriages, i.e. so-called civil unions, were approbated, not just legislatively and judicially but also, and especially, in people's mindsets, the endgame was in sight.

Amending the Constitution would appear to be the only route left available to traditional marriage advocates, but this action highlights the one necessarily unavoidable weakness of the Constitution — in order to legislate morality, you need a moral people. As John Quincy Adams wrote, "Our constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate for the government of any other. "

1 comments:

One Red Holly Berry said... on 4/23/2009 12:26 PM  

Mercy in Humility:
This topic is so deep, so essential, so pivotal in our times, and so indicative of a true foundation in faith (or lack thereof) in each person. It seems to require faith in a God, whether that interpretation be Islamic, Judeo-Christian, or even polytheistic Hindu with a concomitant discipline in that faith to hold any sense in terms of upholding "traditions" as truthful, noble laws. And, since “no one comes to the Father but by [Christ]” (John 14:6), the true answer lies in the inspired, inerrant words of the Bible.

In our times, God is considered so staid, so unfashionable, so provincial, and so myopic by "the world" (i.e. the domain of Satan). To accept that there are limitations on our sexual behavior (in any regard-- heterosexual or otherwise) given by a loving God seems "backward" in a world that espouses the idea that "love knows no bounds." This is a central distortion of God's character. Yes, He is indeed of boundless love (and is only one, truly, the Triune Deity). But, as with all true love, that gift requires responsibility, which embodies the heart of the polemic.

God's love must-needs-be in accompaniment with boundaries, if only insofar as love must-needs-be separate from degradation, or evil. If truth be pure and truth the essence of love, the two cannot truly intermingle to exist at all, one being the dominant force of light.

But in our times we have forced the idea in which boundaries often cannot exist, as seen most commonly in the new god, television (and its cousins in multimedia—internet in bedrooms, films, videogames), which invade the safety and sacred shelter of the foundational social unit, marriage and family. Still, we can serve but one God.
So can we really be surprised that homosexuality is rampant, when marriage is increasingly disrespected through fornication/premarital sex, out-of-wedlock births, adultery/pornography-as-means-of-"entertainment"-and-"advertisement", and so on and so forth? Part of this dilemma comes from the unwillingness of the so-called faithful to identify even mainstream sitcoms (oh, the examples are too many too include) as pornographic (i.e. "that which prostitutes"), through its tasteless jokes and constant innuendo (either verbally, through obscene costumes and characterizations, through hardened-heart "humor" a la' 40-year-old-virgin, and out-and-out glamorization of adultery).

Some same-sex-marriage proponents have thus made a fair criticism that so-called conservative "religious" groups are just as guilty of multiple marriages as are the so-called unfaithful. If we look no different than the "world," are not willing to make the hard decisions in the secret places of our lives, both seen and unseen, how can we point the finger? (For that is what the world sees, rather than fighting for righteousness In and outside ourselves.)

Is it therefore any wonder that God is judging the world through an economic downturn (after longsuffering patience), that infidelity rates have dropped, that obscene "lingerie" stores are going under? This is the blessing of our times: it reminds us to situate ourselves in an often materially uncomfortable but eternally preferable position of relying wholeheartedly on God, which he will eventually require of us in any case if we hard-heartedly refuse to resist (rather than wholeheartedly run to with relief and love). Truth lies in humility at the feet of Christ, making ourselves naked and vulnerable to His divine will in each moment of our lives.

 

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