Tuesday, July 05, 2011
Gay Marriage
Recently pundits and others have noted that President Obama is reluctant to commit himself on this issue. He says his opinion is evolving. Of course, he's in a political tight spot. The issue divides the public into three parts: those who strongly favor gay marriage, those who strongly oppose it, and those who don't care.
For a long time I was in the third category. I married a wonderful woman in 1950 and we lived together until the end in 2007. During that whole period the thought that the marriage of same-sex couples might be a threat to our marriage never crossed my mind. In recent years, when the concept has become a hot item politically, I have moved toward the "favor" camp. Actally, I care a lot more about what the Republicans would like to do about social security and medicare than I do about gay marriage. My attitude is that since it has great importance to gay people and poses no threat to anyone else, I favor allowing it to exist.
I once asked an Episcopal priest whether he would "marry" a gay couple. He said that the Book of Common Prayer has no ceremony for marrying two people of the same sex, and therefore he couldn't do it. He would be pleased, however, to bless the union of a gay couple. The Book of Common Prayer has blessings for everything. There is a lesbian couple who attend the church that I do and they are raising two adopted children. The children also attend the church. When I first started attending the church, one of them approached me and introduced herself and made sure that I understood that she and her partner were lesbians. Naturally I was pleased and flattered that she would make a point of introducing herself to me and welcoming me to the congregation.
For a long time I was in the third category. I married a wonderful woman in 1950 and we lived together until the end in 2007. During that whole period the thought that the marriage of same-sex couples might be a threat to our marriage never crossed my mind. In recent years, when the concept has become a hot item politically, I have moved toward the "favor" camp. Actally, I care a lot more about what the Republicans would like to do about social security and medicare than I do about gay marriage. My attitude is that since it has great importance to gay people and poses no threat to anyone else, I favor allowing it to exist.
I once asked an Episcopal priest whether he would "marry" a gay couple. He said that the Book of Common Prayer has no ceremony for marrying two people of the same sex, and therefore he couldn't do it. He would be pleased, however, to bless the union of a gay couple. The Book of Common Prayer has blessings for everything. There is a lesbian couple who attend the church that I do and they are raising two adopted children. The children also attend the church. When I first started attending the church, one of them approached me and introduced herself and made sure that I understood that she and her partner were lesbians. Naturally I was pleased and flattered that she would make a point of introducing herself to me and welcoming me to the congregation.
Labels: Book of Common Prayer, gay marriage, lesbian couples
