Five stories from five years of same-sex marriage

Cambridge, Mass. - Susan Shepherd looks up at the rough-hewn pink granite of City Hall, just across the Charles River from downtown Boston. An American flag ripples in the wind. Inside the building, a plaque commemorates Cambridge as America's birthplace of legal same-sex marriage. "I can't believe it's been five years," Shepherd says, hugging her wife. "I feel like I just met her yesterday." Nor can gay marriage opponents believe what's happened in Massachusetts since, in their view, traditional marriage came to an end. Yet in the past five years as same-sex marriage became part of Massachusetts' landscape, many Bay Staters say something unexpected has happened: Life is as it always was. Read on

[DNF]

I'm glad to see this headline and this article. In the time that Mass. has had gay marriage, has any of the doom and gloom scenarios the religionists have been claiming will happen, ACTUALLY happened?
NO!
Has any minister been arrested for preaching against same sex marriage?
NO!
Have any churches been sued for refusing to marry two people of the same sex?
NO!
Has polygamy occurred?
NO!
Has anyone lost their job over their religious views?
NO!
Has the sky fallen?
NO!
Am I beginning to sound like the response the Republican Party comes up with lately?
OMG! YES!

[Daniel P from Long Island]

Good article. For these fundie Christians who object to gay marriage being even mentioned in schools,, why do they not also strenuously object when non-Christian religions are talked about in school, or non-Christian people are talked about in school ?

President Taft was the only man in history to be President of the U.S. AND United States Chief Justice.

And he declared he was NOT a Christian.

Should the schools then not teach about President Taft ?

[Jerald]

Daniel P from Long Island wrote:

Good article. For these fundie Christians who object to gay marriage being even mentioned in schools,, why do they not also strenuously object when non-Christian religions are talked about in school, or non-Christian people are talked about in school ?
President Taft was the only man in history to be President of the U.S. AND United States Chief Justice.
And he declared he was NOT a Christian.
Should the schools then not teach about President Taft ?

Taft was a Unitarian who regularly attended All Souls Church in Washington DC. He was criticized as an "infidel" by many when he ran for president in 1908, but refused to directly answer the charge, instead allowing Theodore Roosevelt and others to defend him.

In 1917, well after his presidency was over and before he became Chief Justice, Taft delivered an address entitled "The Religion Convictions of An American Citizen," in which he stated "Unitarians feel the life of Jesus as a man to be more helpful to them, as a religious inspiration, than if he is to be regarded as God in human form." Also, "Unitarianism offers a broad Christian religious faith that can be reconciled with scientific freedom of thought and inquiry into the truth...." Taft thought of himself as a Christian in the Unitarian tradition.

[Daniel P from Long Island]

Jerald wrote:

<quoted text>
Taft was a Unitarian who regularly attended All Souls Church in Washington DC. He was criticized as an "infidel" by many when he ran for president in 1908, but refused to directly answer the charge, instead allowing Theodore Roosevelt and others to defend him.
In 1917, well after his presidency was over and before he became Chief Justice, Taft delivered an address entitled "The Religion Convictions of An American Citizen," in which he stated "Unitarians feel the life of Jesus as a man to be more helpful to them, as a religious inspiration, than if he is to be regarded as God in human form." Also, "Unitarianism offers a broad Christian religious faith that can be reconciled with scientific freedom of thought and inquiry into the truth...." Taft thought of himself as a Christian in the Unitarian tradition.

President and Chief Justice Taft was a great man, and I am not criticizing him. But he publicly denied the divinity of Jesus Of Nazareth. This statement defines him as a NON-Christian. Which is fine with me. I don't care one way or the other whether he was a Christian or not.

My point is that if you believe him NOT to be a Christian, as the fundies would say, then why aren't they upset when a teacher mentions Taft or another Non-Christian in a school ? My point is that the fundies are obviously hypocrites.

[LindaS]

Yeah for Unitarians! And Universalists too.

[ACLU-Tom]

The link to the full article at the original source:

http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/2009...

[Jerald]

Daniel P from Long Island wrote:

<quoted text>
President and Chief Justice Taft was a great man, and I am not criticizing him. But he publicly denied the divinity of Jesus Of Nazareth. This statement defines him as a NON-Christian. Which is fine with me. I don't care one way or the other whether he was a Christian or not.
My point is that if you believe him NOT to be a Christian, as the fundies would say, then why aren't they upset when a teacher mentions Taft or another Non-Christian in a school ? My point is that the fundies are obviously hypocrites.

Many people define themselves as Christian without believing in the divinity of the person known as Jesus. Simply because you don't define them as such, doesn't mean they aren't. Same goes for Mormons. If all of us - gay and straight - are to be consistent in our attitudes regarding the separation of church and state, we must defend the concept of the free exercise of religion in addition to opposing the establishment of religion. Respectful citizens do not deny to others what they can call themselves or what their personal faith beliefs are.

[Daniel P from Long Island]

Jerald wrote:

<quoted text>
Many people define themselves as Christian without believing in the divinity of the person known as Jesus. Simply because you don't define them as such, doesn't mean they aren't. Same goes for Mormons. If all of us - gay and straight - are to be consistent in our attitudes regarding the separation of church and state, we must defend the concept of the free exercise of religion in addition to opposing the establishment of religion. Respectful citizens do not deny to others what they can call themselves or what their personal faith beliefs are.

You missed the WHOLE POINT of my post you idiot !

[Jerald]

Daniel P from Long Island wrote:

<quoted text>
You missed the WHOLE POINT of my post you idiot !

I got your point, Daniel. You missed mine.

[DNF]

Daniel P from Long Island wrote:

<quoted text>
President and Chief Justice Taft was a great man, and I am not criticizing him. But he publicly denied the divinity of Jesus Of Nazareth. This statement defines him as a NON-Christian. Which is fine with me. I don't care one way or the other whether he was a Christian or not.
My point is that if you believe him NOT to be a Christian, as the fundies would say, then why aren't they upset when a teacher mentions Taft or another Non-Christian in a school ? My point is that the fundies are obviously hypocrites.

After I left the Presbyterian faith and discovered the UU church in Baltimore I learned that at one time it was a crime in the State of Maryland to publicly reject the concept of the "Holy Trinity".
Pretty odd for the first colony to guarantee religious freedom in it's charter. But then again it was predominantly Catholic.

[Daniel P from Long Island]

DNF wrote:

<quoted text>After I left the Presbyterian faith and discovered the UU church in Baltimore I learned that at one time it was a crime in the State of Maryland to publicly reject the concept of the "Holy Trinity".
Pretty odd for the first colony to guarantee religious freedom in it's charter. But then again it was predominantly Catholic.

Well, I was born, baptized and raised a Lutheran for more than 40 years. For the past 13 years I've been a member of the denomination called The United Church Of Christ. We celebrated our 150TH ANNIVERSARY 11 months ago, and our current building is 121 years old.

:)

I'm still a Trinitarian.

PEACE !

:)