(Update2: This post has become a lightening rod for people who oppose the LDS Church's stance on gay marriage, thus I am ending comments on this topic - Dave
Update1: Readers, while submitting comments is open to everyone, please note that this is a conservative blog that attempts to stay true to the doctrines of the LDS faith. Comments that decidedly oppose the LDS Church's fundamental position on gay marriage will be removed. This is not a venue to voice opposition to the Church's position nor to ridicule fundamental LDS beliefs. Thank-you for your cooperation. - Dave)
I played high school and college basketball. A strategy that teams often use when a game reaches a crucial point is the full court press. The full court press is an effective way of throwing the opposition off kilter and disrupting normal play. Amid the confusion, the pressing team hopes to steal the ball or force a turnover that will clinch victory.
Full court presses don’t just happen in basketball. They happen in life as well. Recently there have been full court presses on traditional Judaeo-Christian values. One that is particularly evident nowadays is the full court press on traditional marriage.
Homosexual activists have stepped up efforts to normalize homosexuality. They have succeeded in gaining medical, employment, and insurance benefits for same-sex partnerships (e.g., granted to federal government workers in June 2009). In California they have succeeded in getting the gay lifestyle into elementary school curriculum with the proviso that kids cannot opt out (passed May, 2009). Currently efforts are under way to pass federal gay hate crime legislation. And there are efforts to remove the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell policy” on gays serving in the armed forces.
It may surprise you to know that none of these accomplishments is the ultimate goal of homosexual activists. The grand prize is to repeal the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA).
DOMA was signed into law in 1996 by former President Bill Clinton. It states that the federal government recognizes marriage as between a man and a woman, and that no state can be forced to recognize same-sex marriages from other states. Gay activists are trying to tear down this law because it prevents them from normalizing the homosexual lifestyle. If DOMA falls, then the gay community will have successfully legitimized its sexuality.
While I support treating gay and lesbians with respect and dignity in all areas of society, and I understand their wish for same-sex employment and insurance benefits, I am a bit confused by their desire to marry. Why am I confused? I am confused because marriage represents mutual commitment to fidelity and a long term relationship, however, generally speaking, homosexual partnerships are anything but stable. In fact, many are full of promiscuity.
Here’s the evidence:
* In a survey of gay men living in San Francisco, 28% reported having sex with more than 1000 partners (Psychology Today, 1981)
* In a study of homosexuals who kept sexual journals, the average number of annual sexual partners approached 100 (New England Journal of Medicine, 1980)
* Gay activists Kirk and Madsen admitted that “[T]he cheating ratio of married gay males, given enough time, approaches 100% (After the Ball).
* In 1984, the American Psychological Association Ethic’s Committee reported that the fear of AIDS had lowered gay men’s promiscuity from 70 partners per year in 1982 to 50 partners per year in 1984 (USA Today, November 21, 1984).
* According to recent research, 43% of homosexual men in Chicago's Shoreland area have had more than 60 sexual partners, 61% have had more than 30 partners, and 87.8 percent have had more than 15 partners (Sexual Organization of the City, Chicago University Press, 2005).
* A recent survey found that promiscuity is a reality among homosexuals. 20% of homosexuals surveyed have had 51-300 different sex partners, with an additional 8 percent having had more than 300 (Agape Press, September 2006).
Indeed, it appears that, as gay advocate and author Gabriel Rotello put it, “Gay liberation was founded . . . on a 'sexual brotherhood of promiscuity,' and any abandonment of that promiscuity would amount to a 'communal betrayal of gargantuan proportions” (Sexual Ecology: AIDS and the Destiny of Gay Men, 1998).
I don’t mean to denigrate all homosexuals - I am sure that plenty of them live in stable relationships - but the fact of the matter is that, on the whole, homosexual relationships are characterized by infidelity. Putting aside the issue of attempting to normalize homosexuality, all this begs the question: Why marry if marriage does not fit the type of relationship you want to live in?
What is marriage? Marriage is hard work. It is learning to love each other more and more as you grow older and less attractive. It is about sacrificing your wants and needs for those of the other. It is about developing a stronger bond as you work through hardships and trials. It is about raising young children who frequently cry, disobey, fight, and make messes. It is about committing yourself emotionally, spiritually, socially, and sexually to one person for a lifetime. It is about building a loving relationship to stand the test of time.
To the homosexual community I say, if this is not what you want or are willing to commit to, then leave marriage alone!
If the DOMA is repealed, I predict that our fundamental understanding of marriage will gradually be transformed to be more inclusive of the unstable homosexual lifestyle. In fact, transforming marriage may very well be the goal of some activists. According to the playbook of one gay activist, after winning the “fight for same-sex marriage and its benefits, . . . [we’ll] redefine the institution of marriage completely, to demand the right to marry not as a way of adhering to society's moral codes but rather to debunk a myth and radically alter an archaic institution” (Michelangelo Signorile, OUT Magazine, December, 1994).
If our society allows a radical altering of the divinely appointed institution of marriage, this will, as stated in the Proclamation on the Family, “bring upon individuals, communities, and nations the calamities foretold by ancient and modern prophets.”
The best way to beat a full court press is to implement a good offensive strategy. Whatever your strategy, be proactive and don’t let the people in the great and spacious building make you shy away from taking a stand for traditional marriage. There is too much at stake.
Update1: Readers, while submitting comments is open to everyone, please note that this is a conservative blog that attempts to stay true to the doctrines of the LDS faith. Comments that decidedly oppose the LDS Church's fundamental position on gay marriage will be removed. This is not a venue to voice opposition to the Church's position nor to ridicule fundamental LDS beliefs. Thank-you for your cooperation. - Dave)
I played high school and college basketball. A strategy that teams often use when a game reaches a crucial point is the full court press. The full court press is an effective way of throwing the opposition off kilter and disrupting normal play. Amid the confusion, the pressing team hopes to steal the ball or force a turnover that will clinch victory.
Full court presses don’t just happen in basketball. They happen in life as well. Recently there have been full court presses on traditional Judaeo-Christian values. One that is particularly evident nowadays is the full court press on traditional marriage.
Homosexual activists have stepped up efforts to normalize homosexuality. They have succeeded in gaining medical, employment, and insurance benefits for same-sex partnerships (e.g., granted to federal government workers in June 2009). In California they have succeeded in getting the gay lifestyle into elementary school curriculum with the proviso that kids cannot opt out (passed May, 2009). Currently efforts are under way to pass federal gay hate crime legislation. And there are efforts to remove the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell policy” on gays serving in the armed forces.
It may surprise you to know that none of these accomplishments is the ultimate goal of homosexual activists. The grand prize is to repeal the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA).
DOMA was signed into law in 1996 by former President Bill Clinton. It states that the federal government recognizes marriage as between a man and a woman, and that no state can be forced to recognize same-sex marriages from other states. Gay activists are trying to tear down this law because it prevents them from normalizing the homosexual lifestyle. If DOMA falls, then the gay community will have successfully legitimized its sexuality.
While I support treating gay and lesbians with respect and dignity in all areas of society, and I understand their wish for same-sex employment and insurance benefits, I am a bit confused by their desire to marry. Why am I confused? I am confused because marriage represents mutual commitment to fidelity and a long term relationship, however, generally speaking, homosexual partnerships are anything but stable. In fact, many are full of promiscuity.
Here’s the evidence:
* In a survey of gay men living in San Francisco, 28% reported having sex with more than 1000 partners (Psychology Today, 1981)
* In a study of homosexuals who kept sexual journals, the average number of annual sexual partners approached 100 (New England Journal of Medicine, 1980)
* Gay activists Kirk and Madsen admitted that “[T]he cheating ratio of married gay males, given enough time, approaches 100% (After the Ball).
* In 1984, the American Psychological Association Ethic’s Committee reported that the fear of AIDS had lowered gay men’s promiscuity from 70 partners per year in 1982 to 50 partners per year in 1984 (USA Today, November 21, 1984).
* According to recent research, 43% of homosexual men in Chicago's Shoreland area have had more than 60 sexual partners, 61% have had more than 30 partners, and 87.8 percent have had more than 15 partners (Sexual Organization of the City, Chicago University Press, 2005).
* A recent survey found that promiscuity is a reality among homosexuals. 20% of homosexuals surveyed have had 51-300 different sex partners, with an additional 8 percent having had more than 300 (Agape Press, September 2006).
Indeed, it appears that, as gay advocate and author Gabriel Rotello put it, “Gay liberation was founded . . . on a 'sexual brotherhood of promiscuity,' and any abandonment of that promiscuity would amount to a 'communal betrayal of gargantuan proportions” (Sexual Ecology: AIDS and the Destiny of Gay Men, 1998).
I don’t mean to denigrate all homosexuals - I am sure that plenty of them live in stable relationships - but the fact of the matter is that, on the whole, homosexual relationships are characterized by infidelity. Putting aside the issue of attempting to normalize homosexuality, all this begs the question: Why marry if marriage does not fit the type of relationship you want to live in?
What is marriage? Marriage is hard work. It is learning to love each other more and more as you grow older and less attractive. It is about sacrificing your wants and needs for those of the other. It is about developing a stronger bond as you work through hardships and trials. It is about raising young children who frequently cry, disobey, fight, and make messes. It is about committing yourself emotionally, spiritually, socially, and sexually to one person for a lifetime. It is about building a loving relationship to stand the test of time.
To the homosexual community I say, if this is not what you want or are willing to commit to, then leave marriage alone!
If the DOMA is repealed, I predict that our fundamental understanding of marriage will gradually be transformed to be more inclusive of the unstable homosexual lifestyle. In fact, transforming marriage may very well be the goal of some activists. According to the playbook of one gay activist, after winning the “fight for same-sex marriage and its benefits, . . . [we’ll] redefine the institution of marriage completely, to demand the right to marry not as a way of adhering to society's moral codes but rather to debunk a myth and radically alter an archaic institution” (Michelangelo Signorile, OUT Magazine, December, 1994).
If our society allows a radical altering of the divinely appointed institution of marriage, this will, as stated in the Proclamation on the Family, “bring upon individuals, communities, and nations the calamities foretold by ancient and modern prophets.”
The best way to beat a full court press is to implement a good offensive strategy. Whatever your strategy, be proactive and don’t let the people in the great and spacious building make you shy away from taking a stand for traditional marriage. There is too much at stake.
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