In response to the recent United States Supreme Court ruling overturning Section 3 of the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) and California’s Proposition 8 the LDS Church issued a press release. Before we dive into that I want to highlight a few of the following themes in church statements following significant events in the Prop 8 trial.
* Belief in democratic and judicial processes
“Even though the democratic process can be demanding and difficult, Latter-day Saints are profoundly grateful for and respect the ideals of a true democracy.”
“Today’s decision by the California Supreme Court is welcome. The issue the court decided was whether California citizens validly exercised their right to amend their own constitution to define marriage as between a man and a woman. The court has overwhelmingly affirmed their action.”
* Vigorous debate
“We recognize that this decision represents only the opening of a vigorous debate in the courts over the rights of the people to define and protect this most fundamental institution—marriage.
There is no doubt that today’s ruling will add to the marriage debate in this country…”
“We recognize that this decision represents a continuation of what has been a vigorous public debate over the rights of the people to define and protect the fundamental institution of marriage. There is no doubt that today’s ruling will intensify the debate in this country”
* Mutual respect
“We hope that now and in the future all parties involved in this issue will be well informed and act in a spirit of mutual respect and civility toward those with a different position. No one on any side of the question should be vilified, intimidated, harassed or subject to erroneous information.”
November 2008
“[The Church] once again affirms that all of us are children of God, and all deserve to be treated with respect. The Church believes that serious discussion of these issues is not helped when extreme elements on both sides of the debate demonize the other.”
May 2009
“There is no doubt that today’s ruling will add to the marriage debate in this country and we urge people on all sides of this issue to act in a spirit of mutual respect and civility toward those with a different opinion.”
August 2010
“We urge people on all sides of this issue to act in a spirit of mutual respect and civility toward those with a different opinion.”
February 2012
* Bedrocks
“The bedrock institution of marriage between a man and a woman has profound implications for our society. These implications range from what our children are taught in schools to individual and collective freedom of religious expression and practice.”
May 2009
“Marriage between a man and woman is the bedrock of society.”
August 2010
Contrast these themes with the current press release:
“By ruling that supporters of Proposition 8 lacked standing to bring this case to court, the Supreme Court has highlighted troubling questions about how our democratic and judicial system operates. Many Californians will wonder if there is something fundamentally wrong when their government will not defend or protect a popular vote that reflects the views of a majority of their citizens.“In addition, the effect of the ruling is to raise further complex jurisdictional issues that will need to be resolved.”Regardless of the court decision, the Church remains irrevocably committed to strengthening traditional marriage between a man and a woman, which for thousands of years has proven to be the best environment for nurturing children. Notably, the court decision does not change the definition of marriage in nearly three-fourths of the states.”
What we have is an abandonment of the belief in democratic and judicial process, no mention of vigorous additional debate, nothing about mutual respect and not a bedrock in sight.
Instead we are left with complaints about process (note: if you’re whining about process in a debate you’re losing), sour graping about the court’s decision and a rear guard salvo about how almost three fourths of the states are as behind the times as we are.
In twenty years when Oklahoma is the only state to not recognize gay marriage and President Tagg Romney has to order the 101st Airborne to the Oklahoma City Clerk’s office in order to allow gay couples to receive marriage licenses I’m sure the press releases will look different.
And the bedrock mentioned will be one of equality.
My guess is at some point down the road the church will do the same thing with this issue that they did with Blacks and the Priesthood…that is, they will come out, change their stance on it…and then state they they were operating with limited light and understanding and that the Lord has finally seen fit to bless us with the change in doctrine/policy/whatever you want to call it.
Garret,
The fact is, and it is well documented, that blacks had indeed held the priesthood before Pres. Young said otherwise. One such Elder even served a mission! Pardon my laziness to look for the references right now, I’m on a tablet, but I was personally affected by this revelation, because being Brazilian and having been born in1979, that would’ve meant that NONE of my descendants would have had the privilege of having the priesthood (if you know anything about the country, you know that over 90% of people there have a drop or two of African blood in them, which would prevent them from receiving the blessings of the priesthood.
Now, you could use that info to rationalize the change in the position to wanting mor converts etc.
Anyway, I digress. The biggest difference between the two is that the previous is quite arbitrary and, in my opinion, racist consisting with the views of the times (if you were to see me I look as European as anyone without my robust ethnic diversity), and the latter is a matter of chastity plan and simple. Although we know that sexual intimacy is about much more than producing offspring, clothing God’s children with mortal bodies IS its main purpose. And marriage, or The Holy Order of Matromony, is the institution under which Heavenly Father has conditioned the appropriate exercise of this most beautiful of sacraments. It is not about discrimination, which as a Church, we are well experienced in both ends of the problem, but about the eternal plan of salvation, therein lies the great difference. You can help bring spirit children to Earth if you pair a man and a woman of any race, providing their reproductive organs are healthy and fully functional. Not so with any other pairing. And isn’t the formation of families the whole point to this 2nd estate?
Furthermore, being of a different race, was never considered a sin in any holy book of any kind…
No matter, the only thing we can do is try our best to genuinely love one another and live the gospel to the very best of our abilities, which, lets face it, would lead us try to be respectful of diverging points of view.
I love many who are a part of the LGBT community, they are part of my family and my friends and I can honestly say that I’m happy for them when they are happy, same as with my co-habitating friends and family, but I believe their happiness is temporary, and for that I feel sorrowful.
Best of luck,
Cybele
I love posts like this. They give an interesting historical perspective and require little interpretation.
Very enlightening to see how the statements and press releases have change over time…. if only we had a crystal ball.