First Bumper Sticker and Marriage

So I have my very first bumper sticker. I admit it is with some trepidation that I go out onto the streets with it, but because of the importance of the matter I was bold enough to place the sticker up at eye level and not down on the bumper. I am not a confrontational person and when I support something I generally do so in the background quietly. The issue of gay marriage vs. traditional marriage is too important though, and I am stepping out of my comfort zone to support Proposition 8 in California that will reinstitute the traditional definition of marriage.

The reason this is so hard for me to do is not because I do not believe in Proposition 8, but rather, for the first time in my life many people see me as a bad person for supporting something. I am considered intolerant, unfeeling, or bigoted. I also get very nervous when confronted and I don’t feel I adequately or eloquently express my views and position. Ben is so much better at doing this than I am. Guess that’s why he is the lawyer.

When the letter from our church leaders was first read to me I admit I had my doubts as to whether the church should really be pushing for this and if it wasn’t better to let gays and lesbians enjoy all the freedoms of others. The more I have come to study and pray about the issue, and especially the more I come to understand (or perhaps just remember) the purpose of marriage, the more I am convinced that the church’s position is correct and, therefore, I am aligning myself with it.

Fundamentally men are different from women. Therefore a union between a man and a woman is unique and not the same as a union between two men or two women. Marriage is not simply a union of two people to enjoy companionship, express love, or receive financial securities and benefits. If it were so, the state would have no interest in regulating it. However, marriage is the fundamental unit of society. In most cases, I believe though I do not have statistics to support my assumption, a man and woman enter into a marriage not just to pledge their love and commitment to each other, but to pledge their love and commitment to the children they hope to bring into their family. This commitment is one of the hardest to make and longest to fulfill, as children require tremendous amounts of care, time, money, and love for the rest of their lives. Society does have an interest in this type of a union because studies have shown that the ideal environment for raising children is one in which a loving mother and father work together and are married. Not all heterosexual marriages are entered into with the goal of having children, but I believe most are and the sanctity and sacrifice of such marriages are such that I believe the model should be protected. Homosexual unions can never bring their own children into a family. It is a fundamental difference between men and women.

“California statutes already recognize same-sex unions and grant them all the substantive legal rights this state can bestow.” (From the dissenting opinion of Justices Baxter and Chin of the California Supreme Court) I do believe people should be free to love whom they choose and to be with whom they choose and they have the right to enjoy the same privileges as other people, but that does not mean they have the right to redefine marriage. As a wife and parent I am standing up for my rights.