My Thoughts on the Definition of Marriage

The definition of marriage has been debated for the last several years. I’ll be the first to admit that, while I knew I should support the traditional marriage (between a man and a woman), I did not understand why. I felt like I shouldn’t support same-sex marriage because the Church said not to, but I honestly did not see the problem in it. I thought, “If they aren’t hurting me or taking away from my marriage, what’s the big deal?” The articles read for my marriage class this week gave me new insight and now I understand why.  

Marriage is a relationship meant for husband and wife, one male and one female, to bring children into this world. That was the way God intended it. This union goes beyond emotions. It is the physical union of man and woman as well. Same-sex marriage is based on emotion; two females or two males cannot create children.

Another point that was brought up in the article “Marriage: Where Do We Go From Here? The pro-marriage case can win — if we don’t give up on it.” by Ryan T. Anderson, is that children do better when raised by their biological mother and father. This is not even pointing a finger at the LGBT community. The proof is in the research on children living with single mothers, single fathers, divorced parents, or stepfamilies. There is a lower risk of children dropping out of school, pregnancy out of wedlock, depression, etc., when they are raised by both of their biological parents. These cold hard facts prove that children being raised by homosexual couples are at a greater risk for maladjustment, and that is without doing any research on these families.

My opinion has not changed. I still do not support same-sex marriage. However, I do love my fellow men. I work as a dental hygienist and we have a few gays who come to our office. They are sweet and kind. I may not agree with their lifestyle, but I refuse not appreciate them as the wonderful human beings that they are. I believe that even though we all have different opinions, it does not warrant being hateful. We need to show love to all of our fellow men, no matter their sexual orientation, for that is what Christ would do.