Marriage 101 For Religious Dummies

Marriage 101 For Religious Dummies

Proposition 8 looks like it has passed, what a great day for God and the Church! If only the religious people fully understood what it meant, or had read their own religious text! What are the arguments on both sides and why do they make them?

In the blue corner we have two people who (presumably) love each other very much and want to be together forever.  And in the  red corner we have people who claim their right to be legally joined should be voided because marriage has been outlined by God in the Bible as the union of a man and a woman.

You may be surprised to learn that nowhere in the Bible does it ever mention marriage as being the union between a man and a woman. The best we can do is Genesis 2:18, 21-24:

The Lord God said, ‘It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him’…and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs and closed up the place with flesh.

Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man. The man said, ‘This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called ‘woman,’ for she was taken out of man.’ For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh.

But, I would be quick to point out two things : (1) This is the Old Testament, which also says you need to sacrifice and sheep and cover your front doors with it’s blood (Exodus 12:5 – 12:8) and many Christians will say “we don’t do this anymore, because Jesus died for our sins”.  Well, Genesis is also from the Old Testament, and we cannot choose which sections to obey, or else you yourself are playing the God.  And (2) the Bible goes on to indicate that marriage shall not impede a man’s right to take concubines or prostitutes in addition to his wife or wives. (II Sam 5:13; I Kings 11:3; II Chron 11:21)

So we have established that Marriage was never consistently defined in the Bible, and that marriage doesn’t necessarily need to be monogamous to be valid.  So I would like to now also point out that – in some cases – marriage can only be considered valid while the female is a virgin (Deuteronomy 22:13-21).

So, with the gender-polarisation definition of marriage still eluding us, let us also explore further to find that divorce is strictly forbidden in Matthew 5:31:

But I say that a man who divorces his wife, unless she has been unfaithful, causes her to commit adultery. And anyone who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.

So I find this puzzling.  Why are these Christians arguing against gay marriage, when the definition of marriage is never given in the Bible, and yet – the bits we know are forbidden are acceptable?

But watch out women!  I’ve got some news for you.  Strictly speaking you shouldn’t be voting, or working or have any kind of rights.  The Bible clearly outlines the Man as the person in charge, and that the woman must obey as if Man were GOD. (Ephesians 5:22, 28-31)

Let women be subject to their husbands, as to the Lord: Because the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ is the head of the church. He is the saviour of his body. Therefore as the church is subject to Christ, so also let the wives be to their husbands in all things.

It is interesting how these people will argue against gay rights, but they won’t argue against womens rights.  Well California, I got news for you.  Check out Googles official position on proposition 8.  Even if you ignore the negative impact this ignorance will have on your economy I would also be the first to say that the majority aren’t always right.  Hundreds of years ago, the majority believed the colour of someones’ skin was a reason to keep them as slaves.  Hundreds of years before this, the world was flat.

As Obama helps tear down the racial barriers, I’m sorry to say it is one small step for a Man, but one giant leap backwards for California.

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