OP-ED article from Portland Press Herald October 28, 2009

Opponents Misrepresent and Distort Facts in Marriage Equality Debate
by the Rev. Dr. William M. Barter

On November 3rd, voters will decide whether to repeal Maine’s new marriage equality law or vote no to protect the right of all Mainers to marry the person they love. Much of the opposition to marriage equality has come from some leaders of some churches and denominations. Despite their loud protestations, the fact is that more than 200 leaders representing thousands of Mainers who follow 18 different faith traditions have endorsed marriage equality and urge a no vote on Question 1.

Stand for Marriage Maine (SFMM) is the coalition of groups opposed to marriage equality in Maine and behind Question 1 on the November 3rd ballot. Its members include national religious fundamentalist organizations like the National Organization for Marriage and Focus on the Family. It also has the support of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland.

On matters of faith, it is reasonable to expect churches and religious groups to base their arguments on the Word of God. I scoured the organization’s website for references to Scripture, and found none. Highly respected Scripture scholars from many denominations agree that Scripture, when interpreted responsibly, is unclear on the issue of homosexuality, and silent about gay marriage. Perhaps this is why God’s Word is totally omitted by the marriage coalition. Moral statements that omit Sacred Scripture are suspect.

SFMM contends that Maine’s marriage equality law somehow threatens religious freedom. The facts simply do not support this argument. In reality, the new law explicitly protects the historic free exercise of religion.

Before becoming a Lutheran pastor, I was a Roman Catholic priest. In my nine years as a priest, the State (which recognizes divorce) never forced me to marry divorced people, a practice prohibited in the Catholic Church. Even now there are couples whom I refuse to marry in the Lutheran Church for pastoral reasons, and this remains an internal issue. To say that the state will reverse 189 years of history and begin regulating church marriage policies is ridiculous and false.

SFMM argues that a comparison to the history of interracial marriage is wrong and that race has never been part of society’s definition of marriage. This is not true. As recently as 1948, 30 out of 48 U.S. states defined marriage as existing only between a man and woman of the same race. Until 1967, 16 states continued to criminalize interracial marriage until Federal courts ruled those laws unconstitutional.

SFMM says that repeal of Maine’s marriage equality law will protect children. The truth is that marriage equality guarantees that the thousands of Maine children of same sex couples enjoy all of the rights and protections that marriage confers on the children of heterosexual couples. Scientific research and evaluation has confirmed that it is the love and parenting skills and not gender or orientation that determines a good parent. This is the position shared by the American Psychiatric Association, National Association of Social Workers, Child Welfare League of America, American Bar Association, North American Council on Adoptable Children, American Academy of Pediatrics, American Psychoanalytic Association and American Academy of Family Physicians.

Lutherans believe that Scripture interprets Scripture. If a passage in the Bible is clear, repetitive, and emphatic, it carries greater weight than an obscure text lacking clarity. For example, the teachings of Jesus about love and social justice fall into the weightier category, while the passages often used to make a case against homosexuality are less weighty – for example, Jesus never talks about homosexuality. The Christian Church is most Christ-like when we carry out the more important mandates (feeding the hungry, healing the sick, advocating for the oppressed). Misusing Christ’s teachings to scare people into repealing equal rights legislation is not very Christ-like.

The Rev. Dr. William M. Barter is Pastor of St. Ansgar Evangelical Lutheran Church (ELCA) in Portland.