I don't want to live in a theocracy, and I don't any Christian would. We've lived in a country where only heterosexual marriage was accepted for well over 200 years. How would making heterosexual marriage the law of the land suddenly turn the USA into a theocracy?
If we make laws based on religion, who's to say one denomination isn't going to make laws that oppress the freedom of your own? The question was about homosexual marriage. All the major religions of the world have held to heterosexual marriage since their beginnings.
I would vote yes because I don't think gay marriage is harmful in a secular sense, even if it is clearly stated as sinful in the Bible....I have to consider the fact that gay marriage doesn't have any more harmful consequences than heterosexual marriage. So why do you think it's in the Bible if it's no big deal?
As for the harm...from a secular perspective...fake marriage suggests that children don't need a mother and father...children can be raised by two "dads" or two "moms". That seems to suggest there is no differences between the two genders and that neither gender contributes uniquely to a child's upbringing.
From a secular perspective, I'm a bigot/hatemonger/phobe if I don't accept the lifestyle and I should get sued if I own a business and refuse to make a fake wedding cake, take pictures of a fake wedding, or perform other services that promote/support fake marriage.
I don't think homosexuality is any greater a sin than any other I didn't realize that stealing a dollar was as great a sin a stealing a billion dollars, or that punching someone was as bad as murdering him. No, sins aren't all equally bad. 1 Cor 6:9 suggests to me that some sins are looked at as worse than others.
I believe businesses should be allowed to refuse service to anyone they want for whatever reason they want. It's their property, they should do with it as they please. If the owner of a business feels gay marriage is wrong and they want nothing to do with homosexuals, they should be allowed to refuse service to homosexuals. And, truth be told, anyone who is unhappy with the owner can refuse service to the owner if he goes into their shop.
That said, banning gay marriage for religious purposes directly contradicts the U.S. Constitution which states that the government shall make no laws respecting the establishment of religion, or in other words banning gay marriage for religious purposes.
I don't smoke cigarettes, and I don't think anyone should smoke cigarettes. It's a disgusting, unhealthy, habit. However, I support the right for others to smoke cigarettes. That's their choice. They are the ones who will ultimately have to take responsibility for their actions.
If gays want to get married, they should be allowed to, not because gay marriage is acceptable but because we should strive to live in a free nation. Who are we to deny the marriage between two people of the same sex when they aren't infringing on our rights? If they are to be held accountable for their actions, let God judge them. Let man dictate law to protect people's rights, to protect people from one another, not themselves.
You argued that this is about marriage, not about other laws, which is why you aren't concerned with the government using one's own denomination's values to create laws conflicting with the values of your denomination. The problem is, where do you draw the line? You're thinking about each individual law as you would wish it to be written, but you are only accounting for yourself. We live in a society, and if you don't want your own freedoms to be threatened you must also protect the freedoms of others. If you believe the government should be allowed to force people to abide by certain religious doctrine, then you're merely inviting the government to endorse religious views you may disagree with.
Government should not be in the business of religion. Look at the Church of England, look at Nazi Germany, look at all the governments who bastardize religion for their own gain! Government can't be trusted with religion. If you're okay with leaving your religion in the hands of politicians, fine by me. But I believe separation of church and state is best for everyone, including Christians.
I must reiterate, voting yes for gay marriage is NOT an endorsement for gay marriage any more than voting yes to allowing people to smoke cigarettes is an endorsement of smoking. You can argue that marriage is between one man, one woman, and God, but this doesn't account for all the non-religious marriages. Shouldn't it be illegal for atheists to get married, since their marriage is between one man, one woman, with nothing to do with God? Of course not, because marriage to them is a different concept.
Lastly, and I emphasize, I honestly believe the government should get out of the marriage business all together. Leave marriage up to the people. If churches want to marry people, they should be able to wed whomever they want. If two people want to have a secular marriage outside a church, that's fine too. Sure, we may call both of them marriages, but there's a difference between a marriage in accordance to the Bible and a non-biblical marriage. Is it wrong? Again, let GOD be the judge, not man. Man needs to focus on protecting each other from other people.
