"For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh." - The Book of Genesis, Chapter 2 Verse 24.
A few days ago Mike Huckabee was in Comedy Central's Daily Show with Jon Stewart promoting his new book. The Daily Show is one of the very few TV shows (that I watch online) that I watch. After a sets of funny and cordial chattings, Stewarts, a well known but reasonable liberal leaning comedian, cornered Huckabee, a well known but reasonable conservative, on the hot issue of gay marriage. I assumed you are at least like me and lightly familiar with the debate about this issue in American media.
So Stewarts peppered him with a sets of standard questions: why not? it's a fundamental human rights? why not lawful, segregration was an accepted law before? gay couple is just as resposnsible and even more responsible in some cases in child bearing, etc, etc, etc. Huckabee replied, also, with a sets of standard responses; marriage is between man and woman, anatomically determined for procreation; we can't just rewrite the social fabric; a person against gay marriage doesn't mean a homephobe, etc, etc. etc.
The part that I am interested in this blog is when Huckabee mentioned that marriage is a sacred institution between a man and a woman that has been established for five thousands years. We know that Huckabee before became a two-term governor was also a pastor. Stewarts, who had a Jewish background and also well aware about Huckabee's background immedietly brought the B word (the Bible). He countered Huckabee quickly that since the Old Testament the definiton of marriage has been constantly in flux. In fact many of the main characters in the Bible (Abraham, Moses, David, Solomon, etc.) live a polygamous life.
That's true. Many of the characters in the Bible live a polygamous life as the culture in the region at the time and even until today. But what I want to say is those characters also live a natural and not-so-perfect life. The Bible is not an account about a group of angelic people but about God's relationship with them. One of the reasons the Bible becomes so relevant to Christians and to myself is because it recorded the life and stuggles of all these "failed" and full of flaws characters. Those people behaved just like us today when pushed into difficult situations and temptations. They always chose the easy way out even when it's against .. anything: the law, their culture, their family tradition, and God.
Yesterday, inspired by Ps. Yo's Sunday sermon, I re-started my commitment to read the Bible front to back in 2009. As always, I began from the Book of Genesis. Hopefully in 2009 I can go further than that. But that's when I came upon the beautiful verse above, Genesis 2:24, that started this blog.
So, I believe gay couples should get equal rights with heterosexual couples in society. I also believe that marriage is a sacred and eternal institution from God between a man and a woman. A man is created to love his wife. A woman is created to be with her husband. Yes, all singular. If the rest of the people even Abraham, David, or Moses choose to live differently, that's their business with God. Just because Abraham did it doesn't mean I can do it too. What God wants is always a man and a woman to love each other. There is a spiritual blessing in it. The New Testaments reaffirm this truth and God's intention about marriage in several passages especially in the Gospels and the apostles letters.
Epilogue:
If I can use Conan O'Brien's (another TV show I watch) session "In the Year 2000" to predict the future, I would say, in 2012 Huckabee will beat Palin and become the Repulican presidential candidate to challenge Obama. He will win.