Now That the Polls Are Closed...

Well congratulations! You've done your civic duty ... you've voted in this year's NC Primary. Either you REALLY LOVE the democratic process, or you came out because you have strong feelings about Amendment 1. If you voted FOR Amendment 1, to you it signifies that you are willing to take a stand for the sanctity of marriage between one man and one woman. Well since you stood in line, put your name on the line, and filled in the circle, you made it official that you're willing to do what it takes to ensure that the institution of marriage be protected, come liberals, hell, or high water.

 I'm so glad you took a stand! Are you ready to stay standing? You see, marriage isn't something that is protected by a single law, or even a series of laws. It isn't kept sacred by just it's definition being included on the state constitution. It is kept sacred by those to whom it has been given, as a sacred trust from the One who gave it in the first place, and Who therefore asks that it be stewarded in a manner that is worthy of His Name. So here are 5 tangible things you can do to do EVEN MORE for marriage than simply voting.

1) Drop the "D" Word
The divorce rate is as high in the church as it is anywhere else. The absolute first step toward safeguarding the institution of marriage is to stay married. It seems there is a plethora of acceptable reasons to get a divorce these days, and very few are grounds to actually proceed. This isn't a slam against those who have been divorced. It is a call to remember that the same Bible which identifies marriage as being between one man and one woman also vehemently states that marriage is a permanent covenant, and should only be abandoned as the exception and not the rule.

2) Keep it Clean 
I'm mostly talking to the menfolk reading this. Dude, seriously, drop the porn. It's a distortion of what sex is, it messes up your brain function, and ruins your ability to take joy in the things that make marriage awesome. You shouldn't want your wife to act like a pornstar, you should pray for pornstars to be loved as much as you love your wife. Addiction is a bear. Help is available.

3) Keep it Close
If you haven't yet realized that extra-marital affairs are a bigger threat to the institution and sanctity of marriage than homosexuality, you aren't paying attention. To seek sex outside of marriage is to vote "AGAINST" Marriage in the arena of everyday life, and people take notice. Don't just try to make your mark in an election year. Make your mark in all of your circles, showing that husbands and wives can, with grace and discipline, keep from straying.

4) Scrap the Tabloids
HOLLYWOOD (for the most part) HAS ABSOLUTELY NO CLUE WHAT MARRIAGE IS SUPPOSED TO LOOK LIKE. I'm really sorry, but it's a valid claim ... why can Kim K get married, make a mockery of what marriage should be, and then get divorced only to do it all over again? Imagine you are a member of the gay community, wanting to be married, and watching that. Seem a bit inconsistent with our standard of marriage? I think so. $50 to the Congressman that first introduces a Kardashian Marriage Ban. Who cares which actress married which producer? Stop paying attention to the attention mongers.

5) Stand for Others
You are surrounded by friends and family that need help in their marriage. They need encouragement. They need a cheering section. They need someone to tell them they're wrong when they're wrong. Marriage does not exist in a vacuum, and isn't something that everyone should be expected to learn 100% by experience. If your marriage is successful, AWESOME. Share the wealth. Help other people be successful in their marriages. It doesn't take Dr. Phil to fix some issues. Some people simply need advice, and someone to point them in the right direction. If you really believe the Bible is the instruction manual on Marriage, whip out out more often than elections.

 I'm committed to each and every one of these things. My wife is also. If you voted FOR NC Amendment 1, shouldn't you?

A Christian Perspective on S.909, The Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Prevention Act

I know that I'm not a consistent blogger. I also don't consider myself to be a political person. Certain topics trigger my interest more than others, but for the most part I tend to lay low and just let the politicians play their games without a whole lot of spectating or commentary.

I simply can't be silent about this subject, however, because the rest of the Christian Church is voicing a seemingly noble but ultimately ignorant view on this bill and I simply can't let it be the only voice coming from our paradigm. Initially, I bought into the emails that circulated about how devastating the bill could be in the future. Then I read the bill itself. Wouldn't you know, the emails ended up being completely bogus and my perspective on the bill radically changed.

Let's start at the beginning, shall we? S.909, the Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Prevention Act was signed into law by President Obama last week. The church is in uproar over the bill, using the following rationale, quoted from an email that circulated:

"A bill now before Congress would criminalize negative comments concerning homosexuality, such as calling the practice of homosexuality a sin from the pulpit, a "hate crime" punishable by a hefty fine and time in prison. This dangerous legislation would take away our freedom of speech and freedom of religion."

Let me first state that this blog is not intended to post any kind of position on homosexuality or personal or religious views of homosexuality. I am specifically targeting the above perspective on the Hate Crimes Prevention Act. I am not targeting any organizations or individuals specifically.

If you haven't read the bill yet, here's a link to the text version.

http://www.opencongress.org/bill/111-s909/text

Read it. Please. Seriously. I'll wait for you..........

Ok, now that you've read it, let's talk about the Christian Email claims about the bill, and match them up with what the bill actually says.

• Makes speech from the pulpit concerning homosexuality as sin a hate crime...

But check out the language of the actual bill:

"Whoever, whether or not acting under color of law, in any circumstance described in subparagraph (B) or paragraph (3), willfully causes bodily injury to any person or, through the use of fire, a firearm, a dangerous weapon, or an explosive or incendiary device, attempts to cause bodily injury to any person, because of the actual or perceived religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or disability of any person..." (emphasis added)

I see bodily injury, not speech as being the crime. Furthermore, to avoid confusion about speech vs bodily injury, the act has the following language (which you READ ALREADY, right?)

"(1) The term "bodily injury" has the meaning given such term in section 1365(h)(4) of this title, but does not include solely emotional or psychological harm to the victim;"

In other words, words aren't enough. Hurt feelings aren't a crime in and of themselves. Emotional or Psychological harm are not grounds for prosecution. Only bodily harm substantiates a valid use of Hate Crimes. Well, actually, that isn't completely true:

"The Constitution does not protect speech, conduct or activities consisting of planning for, conspiring to commit, or committing an act of violence."

Oh no, maybe this is the loophole on which fellow Christians base this other claim:

• "This dangerous legislation would take away our freedom of speech and freedom of religion."

Maybe this is a good point to bring up an important exegetical strategy that we as Christians feel is important to employ when reading the Bible: let's examine the context surrounding the above language in the bill.

"Nothing in this Act shall be construed to prohibit any constitutionally protected speech, expressive conduct or activities (regardless of whether compelled by, or central to, a system of religious belief), including the exercise of religion protected by the First Amendment and peaceful picketing or demonstration. The Constitution does not protect speech, conduct or activities consisting of planning for, conspiring to commit, or committing an act of violence. (4) FREE EXPRESSION.--Nothing in this Act shall be construed to allow prosecution based solely upon an individual's expression of racial, religious, political, or other beliefs or solely upon an individual's membership in a group advocating or espousing such beliefs."

Please, if you didn't catch it, read that last part again and ask yourself this question: According to the Act, are the freedoms of speech and religion restricted or reinforced?

So let's get to the skinny, Minnie. Here is a good running list of things that are prohibited through the newest rendition of the 1994 Hate Crimes Bill:

• Punching a Norwegian in the nose because of his national origin
• Throwing a stick of dynamite at a lesbian couple because of their sexual orientation
  
• Ejecting a Christian from the passenger seat of your car off a bridge because they believe in Jesus as a religion
  
• Shooting a Muslim with a Bee-Bee gun because he prays 5 times per day as part of his religion
  
• Running a man over with an H2 because all men are dogs, and his gender is male
  
• Lighting someone with down's syndrome on fire because of their unusually pleasant disposition, because of their disability
  

I know that the examples are less than polite, but in the world we live in, you're going to need to move past that. After all, worse things than the above listed actually happen. That's why legislation like this is needed. Sick people commit crimes against others that are motivated by hate based on national origin, gender, religion, disability, gender identity and sexual orientation. If we don't face the world we live in, we can never hope to influence it.

More importantly than the above list of atrocities, here's a list of what is explicitly protected based on the language of the bill that passed:

• Speaking about the Biblical view of Homosexuality
• Belonging to any religious organization that takes a stance against same sex marriage
• Telling someone who maintains an alternative gender identification that you disagree with their view of human identity creation.
• Calling the practice of homosexuality a sin from a church pulpit.

You probably noticed the last one seemed similar to the email claim from the beginning. Good eye. You should join a slow-pitch softball league.

One common thing I hear in response to my position is: "Why do we have to have separate legislation protecting homosexuals or muslims, since they're already protected from bodily injury as citizens of the US?" Here's the simple answer ... the gay and lesbian communities, along with many other groups, are more prone to be targeted for violent crimes as a result of the lifestyle they maintain. Separate legislation is needed to increase consequences because the motive of hatred is more heinous than others. Different motive = different crime = different consequence. It works that way for manslaughter vs first degree murder vs second degree murder, etc. Why wouldn't it work for acts of hate motivated violence? I would encourage all believers to read Exodus and Leviticus to see how this kind of rationale was used in the Law (Torah) that our Constitution was modeled after.

Here is my simple conclusion: the Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Prevention Act doesn't make preaching on the subject of homosexuality wrong, it makes acts of hate motivated violence (hate crimes) illegal, and extends the definition of hate crimes to include those motivated by sexual or gender differentiation and identification.

Also, to anyone that might respond by saying that "This is the first step in a slippery slope...", please acknowledge that your logic is only valid when you can succinctly identify all of the proceeding steps of the slippery slope and then follow that with historical evidence that those steps are both plausible and probable. If you can't do that, stop using that philosophical model.

Ignorance is ugly, no matter whose mouth it proceeds out of. I'm not taking up an issue with Christians or Right-Wing Conservative GOP supporters. I am taking up an issue with the recklessness with which we as the Church of Jesus Christ circulate nonsense emails or speak publicly in an attempt to promote our political agendas or scare trusting followers into getting involved in a protest that they don't even understand.

Read legislation, not just emails. Learn first, don't just react. Speak out of understanding, not misguided fervor. Take your call as an advocate of Jesus, The Truth, seriously.