No Red Herring

I would like to respond to a recent comment I heard, similar to one that I’ve heard before: that the way the church has responded to the issue of divorce and remarriage is entirely different from the way it should deal with blessing same-sex relationships — and that to raise divorce/remarriage as a parallel is to serve up a very large red herring.

I disagree, and would like to offer the following bare-bones schematic as a rationale for why I see the issues as related.

Jesus says, divorce violates God’s will for sexual expression in humanity by putting asunder that which God has intended to remain united.

Some say, same-sex relationships violate God’s will for sexual expression in humanity by seeking to unite that which God never intended to be united.

Jesus says, marriage after divorce is equivalent to adultery, a capital offense under the Law of Moses, and a violation of one of the Ten Commandments; so that the blessing of a marriage of a divorced person constitutes blessing sin.

Some say, same-sex sexuality is a capital offense under the Law of Moses, so that the blessing of a same-sex couple constitutes blessing sin.

Jesus says, the sole exception for allowing divorce is infidelity.

Some say, this sole exception opens the door for other exceptions, including marriage for those divorced.

I say, since the only biblical law (strictly speaking) concerning same-sex sexuality is limited to Jewish males, lifelong monogamous same-sex relationships between Christians may be taken as an exception.

I hope this helps explain why I see the matters as related.

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