How legalizing someone else's homosexual relationship will threaten you
As the same-sex marriage movement has gained steam over the last few years, one of the most-repeated refrains for it has been, "How does legalizing someone else's same-sex relationship threaten you?"
The line of thinking behind that argument is that as long as clergymen aren't forced to perform same-sex ceremonies in a church, religious freedom has been protected. Unfortunately, as we've seen time and again over the last several years, the situation simply doesn't play out that way in the public square.
Stuart Shepard and Jeff Johnston, discuss the threat same-sex marriage and civil unions pose to religious freedom Watch this important video update >
A quick look at just a handful of recent examples illustrates this point vividly:
• Bakery owners in both Colorado and Oregon face complaints for refusing to make cakes for same-sex ceremonies. The Oregon attorney general's office is investigating the latter, and that baker could face a fine up to $50,000.
• A Christian photographer in New Mexico was fined by the state civil rights commission for refusing to photograph a same-sex commitment ceremony.
• Chick-fil-A endured a nationwide boycott and its franchises were sprayed with graffiti after one of its executives said he supports the biblical definition of family. Mayors in major cities from coast to coast said the franchise was not welcome to operate in their jurisdictions, while student groups tried to force other franchises off of college campuses.
In Colorado, where a civil unions bill is currently being considered, a state senator told his colleagues that anyone adhering to a biblical view of marriage should, in effect, join a convent.
Unfortunately, we already know the logical conclusion to this line of thinking, because we've seen it abroad: In Holland, all schools must teach positively about homosexuality; in Denmark, all churches must allow same-sex weddings; and a Canadian politician recently said publicly supporting biblical marriage is "against Canadian law" because same-sex marriage is legal there.
Christians must speak out on these issues in kindness and truth, defending God's design for marriage while demonstrating love for those who disagree. There's simply too much on the line to stay silent.
The line of thinking behind that argument is that as long as clergymen aren't forced to perform same-sex ceremonies in a church, religious freedom has been protected. Unfortunately, as we've seen time and again over the last several years, the situation simply doesn't play out that way in the public square.
Stuart Shepard and Jeff Johnston, discuss the threat same-sex marriage and civil unions pose to religious freedom Watch this important video update >
A quick look at just a handful of recent examples illustrates this point vividly:
• Bakery owners in both Colorado and Oregon face complaints for refusing to make cakes for same-sex ceremonies. The Oregon attorney general's office is investigating the latter, and that baker could face a fine up to $50,000.
• A Christian photographer in New Mexico was fined by the state civil rights commission for refusing to photograph a same-sex commitment ceremony.
• Chick-fil-A endured a nationwide boycott and its franchises were sprayed with graffiti after one of its executives said he supports the biblical definition of family. Mayors in major cities from coast to coast said the franchise was not welcome to operate in their jurisdictions, while student groups tried to force other franchises off of college campuses.
In Colorado, where a civil unions bill is currently being considered, a state senator told his colleagues that anyone adhering to a biblical view of marriage should, in effect, join a convent.
Unfortunately, we already know the logical conclusion to this line of thinking, because we've seen it abroad: In Holland, all schools must teach positively about homosexuality; in Denmark, all churches must allow same-sex weddings; and a Canadian politician recently said publicly supporting biblical marriage is "against Canadian law" because same-sex marriage is legal there.
Christians must speak out on these issues in kindness and truth, defending God's design for marriage while demonstrating love for those who disagree. There's simply too much on the line to stay silent.
