Copious amounts of text ahead.
First of all who are you to say that someone is marrying for the "right" or "wrong" reason?
I have objective say in and of myself. Nor do you have objective say in and of yourself, to say that something is a marriage.
Do you really think you have the right to go around saying one couple's marriage is ok but another isn't just because you happen to disagree with it?
It has little to nothing to do with what I view it as. I have just spent the last couple of threads pointing out that we humans have no basis outside of God establish something of moral truth, let alone any truth. Rather, it's a matter of what God has revealed to us through his word.
If the legal work goes on the side then there should be a "marriage", which is religious, and a "partnership", which is legal.
Should? Where do you get this imperative from? Why should there be?
Would you allow homosexuals to get a partnership if it wasn't called marriage?
Ideally, no.
Ok, let me ask you something since you insist on bringing up my religious views (which are, in my opinion, very irrelevant here).
Actually it's not irrelevant. What we're dealing with most fundamentally is an astronomical difference in worldview. Which surprisingly is something you have apparently missed thus far.
If you found out tomorrow that everything in the Bible was false (this is 100% hypothetical), and that there is no God:
If there is no God, there is no moral imperative. No moral law. No moral right, no moral wrong. It's
subjective. At most, morality under such a logical system is just personal preference. You don't like to get hurt. Big whoop. The universe doesn't care.
You should read about
Objective Morality.
would you suddenly lose all morality?
Objectively yes.
Would all your values and beliefs and principals evaporate?
Yes. If there is no God(which of course there is not, which is why this question can even be asked in the first place) logically speaking, it would all be meaningless valueless mental garbage. Nietzsche would be right. At best "morality" would be a matter of who can enforce what, rather than what is true.
Would you go around killing people?
What would be wrong about that? If it's not wrong (which you can't say it is being non-theistic), what does it matter? Molecules are just molecules. A severed head is just a re-arrangement of molecules that have been rearranged a thousand times before. It is of no moral consequence whatsoever. We may not like it, we may object to it on the basis that we don't like it. We certainly could not consistently claim it as immoral. Stuff is stuff. The universe doesn't care about how you feel regarding severed heads for the sake of severing heads.
It really bothers me that people think non-theists have no morals.
Again, you misunderstand. I'm not saying you don't believe in a right or a wrong, and that you don't regulate yourself on that basis. What I am saying, is that your beliefs mean absolutely nothing to reality. Reality is, there is no right and no wrong under non-theistic logical systems.
I would have to deny scripture to say that those who are god-haters do not believe there is a right and a wrong.
Romans 2:14-16
[SUP]14 [/SUP]For when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do what the law requires, they are a law to themselves, even though they do not have the law.[SUP]15 [/SUP]They show that the work of the law is written on their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness, and their conflicting thoughts accuse or even excuse them[SUP]16 [/SUP]on that day when, according to my gospel, God judges the secrets of men by Christ Jesus.
Let me throw this in as to hopefully put this ridiculous point your trying to make aside:
View attachment 39420
This is irrelevant. The amount of "Bad" a person does, makes no difference as to whether there is a moral law or not. To argue that prison statistics makes Christians morally insufficient people, first goes into an indeterminable numbers game, and two is a total understatement of reality. The reality of the matter is, Christians are absolute moral filth. There is no good thing about us on our own account. WE have nothing of moral value to offer unto you for our defense from our own account, for by our own account we have no righteousness a'tall.
You're in the same boat.
The only righteousness one could have is on the account of Christ.
2 Corinthians 5:21
God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
One day, it might be yours.
Well, a lot from my parents as parents tend to pass down values to their children.
Appeal to Tradition is a fallacy that occurs when it is assumed that something is better or correct simply because it is older, traditional, or "always has been done." This sort of "reasoning" has the following form:
X is old or traditional
Therefore X is correct or better. (Source:
click here)
Also a consideration of the pros and cons of my actions, and what I feel is a fair way to act.
How do you determine that a "pro" or a "con" is that? That there is something of value in either one? Is this a matter of fact, or of opinion? Why is fairness something that should be a requisite?
I consider myself to be a good person: I donate to charity, I help those I see needing help, and I am constantly trying to better the world.
How is it that you are good from doing those things? Are those things good? If they are good, on what basis is that determined? Is it your opinion that they are good? Is it a fact?
In the case of gay marriage it's as simple as this: I don't want people dictating how I should live, so I'm not going to dictate how others should live.
Okay, so why object to us? You want to do that, fine do that. Doesn't make you right, doesn't make you wrong on a non-theistic system. What you are doing is amoral since such a pronouncement of moral goodness or badness is not possible on a non-theistic system.
Two men or two women marrying has absolutely no impact on my life, so denying that to them makes no sense to me.
Allowing it makes equally less sense. The two positions are equally senseless under a non-theistic system. Doesn't matter. The universe doesn't care.
Regardless of whether or not I agree with their marriage, it does not make any impact on my life.
Cool.
Now, can we please move away from my beliefs and discuss the topic of the thread?
We are discussing the topic of the thread. Notice how much our posts are still about the rightness or wrongness of homosexual relationships proclaimed as marriage?