Redefining Marriage
I was reading recently in our local paper about the attempt
in our state capitol by our legislature to redefine civil marriage as the legal
union of two persons. Current law restricts it to a union between a man and a
woman. There is little that either side
can do to convince the other side the "error" of their way. We are now engaged in a great cultural
struggle in our society. It is the
struggle over the minds and hearts of our children as to what is acceptable and
unacceptable behavior in our society.
It has come to a battle over words.
Words have meaning and there is power behind them. The battle is over the word "freedom." It seems that American's short memory of
their own history has now come to haunt them.
Instead of knowing the term freedom, they are allowing others to define
it for them. We have been told over and
over again that we as Americans are free to do what ever we want. But, like the serpent in the Garden of Eden
that seduced Eve into eating the forbidden fruit, this is only half of the
story. The other side of this truism is
that with freedom comes responsibility.
For too many, freedom has been reduced to meaning the freedom to do
whatever I want. Unfortunately, our
legislature and our culture have taken this narrow view of freedom to heart and
are now rushing pell-mell to legalize every act and behavior. Under the guise of "civil rights" or the
"safety of our children," our legislators have moved to enshrine abhorrent
behaviors with the fig leaf of legal protection and legal normalization. While it may be said that morality cannot be
legislated, laws against such behavior become cultural guidelines for society,
especially our youth, as to acceptable and normal behavior. An adulterous person is going to commit
adultery whether there is a law making it illegal or not. The sin is not in the act, but in the
heart. Having a law making the act of
adultery illegal does not prevent adultery from being committed in the
heart. It does however, set a definite
barrier for our society as to what is acceptable and unacceptable
behavior. But even here, barriers of
acceptable cultural behavior that have existed for centuries are now being
redefined by those very legislators that we have elected. As members of this culture we have a right to
speak out and voice our opinions just as loudly as those who are actively
opposed to us. "All things are lawful
unto me, but not all things are expedient:
all things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power
of any" (1 Corinthians 6:12). This quote from St. Paul is a reminder to us that
freedom comes with responsibility. God
has given us free will and what a tremendous gift it is. However, St. Paul in this passage from
Corinthians reminds us that we, as human beings, should not allow ourselves to
be defined by our human nature, by our wants and desires. Made in the image and likeness of God, we are
defined by our relationship with God. The closer we draw to Christ the closer
we reflect the image of God in us.As Christians we are called to be detached
from things. This includes not only material and intangible things such as
money and power, but also the various wants and desires of our bodies. We are not to be slaves to our bodies, our
passion or our desires. Just as we
cannot outlaw the alcoholic into sobriety, neither will the redefinition of
marriage change the meaning of marriage that the Christians and Jews have had
for millennia. The danger in the
cultural war that we are presently engaged in is the simple question of where
do we as mere human beings stop? The
problem is that we as a society are losing any anchor of moral stability. Morality is more than just knowing the
distinction between right and wrong.
Going deeper, morality is ultimately based on society's belief in
God. God, not man, is the standard by
which we as Christians determine our set of absolute values, what is right and
wrong behavior. The attack against God
in our country and the false notion that there is separation of church and
state has allowed the cultural warriors to redefine society's understanding of
right and wrong. Someone who is immoral
is someone who goes against those God given truths. We, however, have now fully entered into a
state of amorality where God is no longer the standard of right and wrong. Having called into question God's existence,
man has now placed himself in God's place.
The standard is no longer God, but man.
As Christians, our work is to maintain the Church's understanding of
what is right and wrong. Our work is to be sure that that is what is taught to
our children, not only in church but also in our homes. It must be talked about at home. Our children
must be reminded over and over again what is acceptable and unacceptable
behavior. They need to understand that this might be contrary to what is being
taught at school. But we must continue
to remind them that we as Christians are called to an even higher standard than
what the world asks of us. Not that we condemn or hate the person or persons
who oppose us but that we do not accept or condone their behavior as normal.
May God give us the strength to do and teach that which is right and true.
- Very
Rev. Fr. Luke Mihaly
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