March 29, 2015
Matthew 22:36-40 New International Version (NIV)
36 “Teacher,
which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”
37 Jesus
replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your
heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’[a] 38 This is the first and greatest commandment.39 And the second is like
it: ‘Love
your neighbor as yourself.’[b] 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two
commandments.” (https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+22:36-40)
Last week, the governor of Indiana, Mike Pence, signed “The
Religious Freedom Bill.”
“Senate Bill 101 prohibits state or local governments from
substantially burdening a person's ability to exercise their religion — unless
the government can show that it has a compelling interest and that the action
is the least-restrictive means of achieving it. It takes effect July 1.” (http://www.indystar.com/story/news/politics/2015/03/25/gov-mike-pence-sign-religious-freedom-bill-thursday/70448858/)
The proponents of the bill felt that its implementation was
necessary in order to protect religious rights; opponents feel that the bill promotes
discrimination.
Twenty other states have similar laws, but none are as broad
as Indiana’s. CNN did an excellent job
of explaining the bill: (http://www.cnn.com/2015/03/27/politics/indiana-religous-freedom-explainer/index.html) Yahoo did a great job explaining why this bill is so different than the others.
(https://www.yahoo.com/politics/what-makes-indianas-religious-freedom-law-115030098311.html?soc_src=unv-sh&soc_trk=fb&fb_ref=Default).
(https://www.yahoo.com/politics/what-makes-indianas-religious-freedom-law-115030098311.html?soc_src=unv-sh&soc_trk=fb&fb_ref=Default).
From the very beginning, people have come to this country in
search of religious freedom. It has
become increasingly clear that some people feel that religious freedom means
that they have the right to impose their beliefs on others.
Proponents of this bill will tell you that they are tired of
the government restricting their religious rights. For example, the Catholic Church and some
Protestant denominations object to Obamacare, because it requires an
organization’s health care coverage to include birth control. I don’t understand the problem. No one is forcing any member of these faiths
to use birth control. The government is
not using health care laws to promote it.
It is a woman’s health issue. If
a woman wants or needs birth control, the government feels she has the right to
have the option available to her.
I feel that the
implementation of this law and laws like it is the result of the legalization
of gay marriage. “Social conservatives
have pushed hard for such measures across the country following recent federal
court rulings that legalized same-sex marriage in Indiana and other states.”
(http://www.indystar.com/story/news/politics/2015/03/25/gov-mike-pence-sign-religious-freedom-bill-thursday/70448858/) The Indianapolis Star is putting it mildly. They were furious.
Social conservatives want the right to refuse to do business
with people or groups whose actions (in their opinion) are adverse to their religious
beliefs. The bakery discrimination case
is a prime example of this thinking: (http://aclu-co.org/court-rules-bakery-illegally-discriminated-against-gay-couple/) A bakery would not provide a wedding cake for
a gay couple. The bakery was a public
business and Colorado ruled that it had discriminated against the couple. This is what the Indiana ruling
eliminates. It allows the right to for a
business to pick and choose who they do business with based on the owner’s
religious beliefs. It is discrimination,
pure and simple.
These are public business transactions. If you deal with the public, you are going to
meet a variety of people who have different belief systems. You can’t pick and choose your
customers.
I must admit I don’t get this. Whether you believe in gay marriage or not,
gays are your neighbors. To quote Jesus
Christ again, “Love your neighbor
as yourself.” I’m not seeing the love here. He didn’t say love only some of your neighbors. These laws are not brought out of love,
but out of fear and hate.
Why is gay
marriage so threatening? It is about
validation, power and control. If a
faith is valid, then gay marriage shouldn’t be a threat to it. A gay person’s orientation becomes none of
your business. It has no impact on you
or your beliefs. However, if you are
insecure in your faith, anyone who does not believe the way you do is a threat
to it. This insecurity triggers
controlling behaviors, because the controller sees nonbelievers as invalidating
the controller’s beliefs. They need
validation or their belief system breaks down.
I am not a fan of
the way some businesses spend their profits.
A large number donate their proceeds to some questionable charities, but
it doesn’t stop me from interacting with their establishments. Their beliefs are their business as long as
they do not break the law. For me, it is
a business transaction, nothing more.
Making a wedding cake for a gay couple is purely a business transaction,
as well. It does not mean that you
approve of gay marriage. It means
someone is paying you to bake a cake.
It will be interesting to see how this will play out. I wonder if these same businesses will start
refusing Muslim, Jewish, or Atheist customers.
I would think that denying Jesus Christ as God and Savior is a much
bigger deal than two people of the same sex wanting to get married.
What the social conservatives haven’t considered is that there
is a flip side to this. If you can
discriminate, then so can anyone. How
would they feel if they entered a bakery to purchase a christening cake and
were told that the owner wouldn’t sell them one because of their religious
beliefs? Or that their bakery is being
boycotted for the same reason?
Governor Mike Pence stated that he will not amend the law to
add protections based on sex discrimination (http://www.cnn.com/2015/03/29/politics/mike-pence-indiana-anti-lgbt-religious-freedom-law/index.html).
Indiana is experiencing a significant backlash
as a result. Major companies have
expressed their disapproval and plan to take their business elsewhere. You can’t have your cake and eat it too.
Matthew 7:1 states “Don’t judge or you too will be judged.” Remember the second greatest
commandment. There is way too little
love in this world. Don’t judge someone
based on whom they choose to love.
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Update:
Both Indiana and Arkansas are revisiting their laws and amending them so that the LGBT community is not subjected to discrimination.
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Update:
Both Indiana and Arkansas are revisiting their laws and amending them so that the LGBT community is not subjected to discrimination.
