The Fall of DOMA

Today was a big day for LGBT folks nationwide. President Obama made it clear that they are no longer going to enforce the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) through the judicial or executive branches. Essentially, they said that it was discriminating against a minority group and came up with a few arguments to make their case.

Despite being a somewhat conservative Christian, I have to admit this news did not upset me.

Here's my take on the issue:

Point #1: We live in a country with a large number of Christian individuals, but I do not believe it is a “Christian Nation” as many religious folks here claim. Despite an overwhelming majority of our founding fathers being Christian, it is clear to me that they were attempting to set up a fairly secular government. They were intelligent individuals who understood history and saw the damage that a marriage between church and state does to both church and state. They were also products of their time: the Age of Enlightenment. (if you want further arguments on that I can post the chapter from my book, Christian Candor, that addresses this topic very thoroughly).

With all of that said, I don't believe the founding fathers would have been supportive of the Religious Right's attempt to force everyone, Christians and non-Christians, to live by the standards of the Bible. If they don't profess to be Christians, why should we expect people to live and act like Christians?

That leads me to my next point...

Point #2: Morality should not be legislated. It simply doesn't work that way. I wrote another chapter in my book regarding this as well. You can't force moral laws onto people in an attempt to straighten out their hearts. Nobody is going to experience God by forcing rules on them.

It seems as if the church is attempting to compensate for their failing influence by forcing religion into the legislative arena. The Religious Right needs to wake up and understand that they can't force people into living biblical standards. We are supposed to be a light of love, forgiveness, and mercy. The world is to know we are Christians by our love. (more on Christians being overly political here: http://www.friendburst.com/blog/10651/problem-washington-dc-focus/http://www.friendburst.com/blog/10651/problem-washington-dc-focus/)

Point #3: I believe the conservative fight to “protect” marriage is hypocritical. Not once did Jesus address homosexuality, but he strongly opposed divorce. Yet, a very large number of people in the church are divorced. I think if they were truly concerned about “protecting marriage” they would try to outlaw all divorce, especially for those who are Christians.

They could also direct funding toward paying counselors to provide pre-marital counseling for couples to ensure a more successful marriage. Imagine the millions of dollars a year they spend fighting against homosexuals instead going toward free marriage and pre-marriage counseling.

How about we protect marriage in the church first, and then, once we get our own lives in order, try to figure out how we can help the rest of the world.

Point #4: The topic of whether or not homosexual relations are a sin is beyond the scope of this blog.  I am simply acknowledging that a majority of American Christians reject homosexual relationships, and therefore addressing this blog to those who fall into that category. 

What do you think of this decision? Was it good or bad? Should the government even be in the marriage business, or should they only do civil unions?