same-sex marriage is up way too loud

When you stand on as unpopular a spot as I do in the culture war regarding gay marriage, you sooner or later get to spar with just about everyone. My gay friends don’t understand my spiritual convictions, my christian brothers and sisters don’t understand my sexuality, my dad doesn’t understand why I vote democrat, etc. Of course, the volume has been cranked up WAY TOO LOUD on this issue and no one can hear themselves think. It saddens me that so few people are taking the middle way on this issue and I am afraid that the push to legalize gay marriage is going to cause a violent backlash.

In a nutshell, I believe this: a same-sex couple should be able to share property, enjoy health benefits, and be subject to the same laws of inheritance and certain other privileges (such as hospital visits).  I do not think that there is enough data available to make a blanket judgment regarding parental/adoptive rights. However, I always believe that a child’s natural parents should be part of the child’s life so long as there is no risk of abuse to the child–this goes for hetero and same-sex couples alike.

Should it be called a marriage? No. Marriage is a sacrament and is reserved for a man and a woman who can create a special family unit with their bodies. When two men or two women can engage in sex with each other and create a child, then maybe I’ll reconsider.The difference in legal status reflects a difference in physical nature that can’t be denied.

But no matter how hard you try,no matter how many parades you attend or how clever your protest signs are, same-sex couples aren’t the same as heterosexual couples.I don’t say this out of malice, in fact, as a “gay” man, you’d think I’d want to champion the right to marry–but I don’t because it doesn’t make sense to call the relationship between a  same-sex couple a marriage, any more than it does to call my cat an artichoke. It just isn’t so.