Many states of the world have legalized same sex marriages or in other words, gay marriages. The trends regarding homosexuality are on the rise around the world, and progressive thinkers believe it is the right of individuals to marry whomever they desire. Even though, gay marriage is looked down upon by several religions, but there are people in a gay wedlock. Human rights activist often support the idea of gay marriage because they believe nobody has the right to dictate individuals about, who to marry. Catholicism is strictly against gay marriage, same sex relationships, and social acceptance of homosexuality; however, they do no encourage or promote disrespect against homosexuals. The Administrative Committee of the US Conference Bishops condemns gay marriage because it is unrepresentative of the true meaning of marriage. A marriage is a lifelong union between a man and a woman and they are legally allowed to indulge in intimate partnership of life and love. Homosexuals, on the other hand, are non-procreative; therefore, cannot be considered as married.
People who believe in the Catholic Church know and understand that Catholics place a very high value on marriage and human sexuality. The account of Genesis is a proof that God promises humankind a satisfactory lifestyle, and he did this by creating woman to fulfill the man’s needs and compliment him where man lacks. In other words, God created marriage and sexuality for the benefit of its beings. Through marriage, God is able to send his blessings upon the couple and their children. According to the Catholic Church, the relationship of a married baptized male and female is sacrament and God protects this couple to stay together during their life and in the hereafter. The concept of marriage in Catholicism is not only religious, but it has a social aspect, as well; however, the religious aspect supersedes all other aspects. Catholics are against gay marriages for one basic reason that marriage contributes towards the health of the entire society. Marriage is a holy matter; therefore, it must be treated with dignity and reverence. Catholics have a duty to defend marriage as part of their religious and social obligations (Catholic Answers, 2004).
Homosexual activists often refer to staunch Catholic believers as homophobic. The term homophobic may not be appropriate because Catholics do not fear homosexuality. Time and again, the Catholic Church recognizes that homosexual individuals exist and they must be treated with compassion and sensitivity. Homosexuality is considered a disorder by the Catholics and since they regard it as unnatural they do not accept it as compared to the intimate relationship between man and woman. As people have been created by God and their sexual desires are uncontrollable whether towards the same gender or not; therefore, everyone should be respected. All individuals are equal in the eyes of God, but determining the right from wrong is in the hands of God’s beings. The Catholic Church condemns gay marriage because it harms the society as a whole. Same sex partners are unable to reproduce naturally, and may have to go against the natural order of things to have a family. Children brought up in homosexual households may be socially conditioned towards homosexuality and may indulge in homosexual behavior without a natural justification. In other words, homosexuality would breed homosexuality and society’s well being would suffer in the long-run.
The Lutheran Church has several sub-categories and each has a varying perspective about same sex marriage. The Lutheran Church in general suggests that sensitivity and compassion must be shown towards homosexuals that are similar to the Catholic teachings. The two main categories of Lutheran movements include; the traditional Lutheran churches and the Evangelical Lutheran movements. The Evangelical Lutheran Church that is located in America is comparatively new and is still in the development stages. The call of the Evangelical Lutheran Church is that homosexuals are given the status of ministers, but they should stay away from intimate homosexual relationships. In other words, it is suggested that the Evangelical Lutheran Church shares many of the same traits as the Catholic Church that they both look down upon homosexual relationships, but do not mean disrespect to these individuals. According to the ELCA, people are sinners and if they indulge in homosexuality they would just be committing one more sin amongst the many sins they already commit. Individuals recognize that they are sinful; therefore, the admission of any particular individual is not restricted within the church. Every individual who feels the need to seek forgiveness from God and Christ may be allowed to enter the church as and when required.
Many individuals interpret the teachings of the bible as silent on homosexual marriages. As every individual has sinned and they seek forgiveness for their sins in one way or another then homosexual marriage is also just one of the sins and should not be considered a big deal. Individuals consider the theological convictions regarding sin and grace as a blessing for same sex unions. According to ELCA if gay marriages are committed to fidelity, are committed towards promoting healthy relationships for a stable society, and show the same level of care and mutual respect similar to heterosexual relationships then there is no reason to condemn homosexual marriages. If the purpose of marriage as mentioned is similar to those of heterosexual couples then the marriage of homosexuals should also be celebrated as it is in concordance to God’s law. There are critics of the views of ELCA on homosexuality and marriage. Critics suggest that people who indulge in homosexual relationships are disobeying God’s commands directly; thus, these individuals would not be forgiven. God has created man and woman to indulge in heterosexual relationships; therefore, going against the natural order of things is a direct rejection of God’s commands. People may confess to sin directly to God and may promise God not to indulge in those acts again. In case of homosexuality, the individual confesses to sin publicly and this is not the same as confessing to sin in privacy. Moreover, the individual does not refrain from homosexuality; therefore, the sin may not be forgiven (Childs & Payne, 2003, pg. 34).
Protestants are different to mainstream Catholic Churches because they publicly accept gay marriage as an acceptable part of their denomination and society. Liberal Protestants are working to gain greater rights for homosexuality and Conservative Protestants do not have a way out of this trend towards acceptance of homosexuality. Protestants hold the belief that man is unable to reason after Adam was sent to earth; therefore, there is no point in humans trying to reason out what God has said rather, they should be free to choose what they desire. In order to implement the teachings of the Bible it is necessary to understand and interpret the Holy Book. Protestants do not believe in implementing the teachings of the Bible to individual life because they feel it is the right of individuals to choose what is right for them and what is not. Unlike Catholic beliefs, in Protestantism the basis of law is not the Bible rather laws are made based on the majority’s viewpoint. As majority of the Protestants are liberals the idea of homosexuality is increasing in popularity. Moreover, Protestants are free to choose the church or denomination that is similar to their beliefs and they are most comfortable with. In contrast to Catholicism, Protestants have given greater freedom of choice to their members. Catholics are able to distinguish right and wrong based on the teachings of the Bible. On the other hand, Protestants do not base judgments on the Bible and decisions are taken based on the majority’s viewpoint (Nick, 2013).
The Baptist Church similar to the Lutheran and Protestant denominations has sub-divisions. The opinion about homosexuality is dependent upon the individual church’s beliefs and members values. Some Baptist Church’s are silent upon homosexuality; whereas, others have shown opposition to the idea of homosexuality. The Southern Baptist Convention believes that the Bible is against homosexuality and condemns this behavior; therefore, they consider it sinful. Moreover, they also believe that people are able to choose their sexual partners and homosexuals can eventually overcome their homosexuality to become chaste. Unlike Catholicism, Southern Baptist Convention does not classify homosexuality as an unforgivable sin. Baptist Churches are heavily influenced by cultural factors; therefore, every church has its own set of beliefs about homosexuality. Baptist Church in Australia still considers marriage as between a man and a woman, and any other deviations from this are considered as wrong and sinful. Human rights activists are becoming increasingly influential and some have often joined hands with homosexual activists to allow same sex marriages as part of the legal system. Catholics suggest that all decisions should be made keeping into consideration the teachings of Christ and God. Baptists, on the other hand, suggest that people are free to determine what they want and are not bound by biblical teachings. The Bible has long been the only source of authentic information, but as trends are changing the role of the Bible is also losing its importance for some Baptists; whereas, others are still close followers of the Bible.
Denominations are increasingly growing to accept same sex marriages, but the Evangelicals have remained steadfast. The Evangelicals opposition against same sex marriage has been constant over the last ten years and may even have increased in certain regions. Evangelicals believe that the Bible is the final word and interpretation of the Bible may not be based on convenience. Those acts that are sinful will remain sinful with the passage of time as well. 90 percent of Evangelicals considered marriage to be a tie between a man and a woman in 2003 and there was no alternate to this setting; however, now this view is supported by 93 percent of Evangelicals. The growing trends against gay marriages amongst the Evangelicals make them similar to Catholics. The moral acceptability of gay marriages is also not common amongst Evangelicals and has risen to 98 percent. Evangelicals believed that through marriage the husband and wife reproduce and this is a healthy sign for a society. If homosexual marriage is promoted and encouraged in society then the entire system may collapse. Catholics may be considered as sympathetic towards homosexuals, but Evangelicals are considered as homophobic (Schmitz, 213). People who are of the Evangelist denomination are highly critical of gay marriage and often come across as insensitive by those denominations that are in favor of gay marriages such as Protestantism. Critics of the Evangelical denomination’s belief suggest that those churches that have not evolved with the changes in society have declined over time. People are becoming sensitive towards gay marriages; therefore, if the Evangelists are steadfast about their opinions they may lose membership. Some people may not be homosexual but may have sympathy towards homosexuals. If Evangelical beliefs do not change or at least give a little freedom to support gay marriages, then people in favor may opt out of this denomination and become members of those that are sympathetic towards this issue.
Catholicism has many similar traits to the various denominations discussed above including; Protestants, Lutherans, Baptists, and Evangelicals. Every denomination has its own set of beliefs because of which they are distinct from Catholicism. However, there are several similarities and differences between them all. The most prominent similarity about Catholicism and Protestantism, Baptism, and Lutheranism regarding homosexuality is that they are compassionate and sensitive towards homosexuals. The idea of homosexual marriage may be viewed differently by each denomination. People choose which sect they belong to depending upon which sect is most closely linked to their belief system. The wrong and right may be considered as subjective terms in the case of denominations. If the Bible is not being consulted to make decisions then no one denomination may suppose superiority over the other. However, denominations often evolve over time and adjust to the needs of the culture and society in which they exist. The change in beliefs over time may cause people to change their membership to other denominations depending upon their individual values.
Protestant churches have experienced a reduction in the membership of its people as they become more open towards homosexuality. Conventional Protestants found it increasingly difficult to agree with the supportive nature of gay marriages; therefore, many have abandoned these groups. Catholics, on the other hand, do not support gay marriages whatsoever, but they still have no experienced a decline in their membership because they are sympathetic towards homosexuals and consider as God’s decision. God may create certain individuals differently, and Catholics accept this trait of God. Gay marriages are looked down upon but homosexuals are not. Even though, gay rights activists are fighting for rights of marriage in different parts of the world there are people who are either supportive or critical of this idea. From a social perspective there are many supporters of gay marriages because it is the right of homosexuals to have an intimate partner they are attracted towards. If homosexuality is a natural trait of an individual then gay marriage should not be looked down upon. However, from the religious perspective it may become difficult to offer justifications of gay marriages as this is against Catholicism to offer support to those acts that have been deemed as sinful.
Works Cited
"Catholic Answers." Gay Marriage. N.p., 31 Dec. 2004. Web. 10 June 2014. <http://www.catholic.com/documents/gay-marriage>.
Childs, James M. , and Margaret G. Payne. The Church and Homosexuality. Chicago: Augsburg Fortress Publishers, 2003. Print.
Nick, .. "NICK'S CATHOLIC BLOG." : Why Protestantism is caving into Homosexuality. N.p., 20 Feb. 2013. Web. 10 June 2014. <http://catholicnick.blogspot.com/2013/02/why-protestantism-is-caving-into.html>.
Schmitz, Matthew. "Evangelicals Oppose Gay Marriage, Now More than Ever | First Thoughts | First Things." First Things. N.p., 10 July 2013. Web. 10 June 2014. <http://www.firstthings.com/blogs/firstthoughts/2013/07/evangelicals-oppose-gay-marriage-now-more-than-ever/>.
