WWJD? Support the Rights of Same-Sex Couples to Marry

Many within the evangelical, Catholic and other Christian movements continue to argue against same-sex marriage on the grounds that it runs counter to New Testament teachings.

I've got two words for them: They're wrong.

Jesus of Nazareth was nothing if not inclusive. According to the gospel writers, he was repeatedly criticized for associating with "tax gatherers and sinners," and he was seldom portrayed as refusing a request to perform a sacred act.

In modern parlance, we call such acts "sacraments," sacred rites considered fundamental to the life of a religious assembly. The Catholic Church recognizes seven of them, but only four were actually practiced in Jesus' day: baptism, anointing of the sick, the Eucharist (communion) and matrimony (marriage). The other three - penance, holy orders/ordination and confirmation - were added later by the church. Jesus never talks about them or performs them. ...

Jesus saw his mission as helping those who were burdened, not placing new burdens upon them - something many today are seeking to do in his name. They wield their yoke like a weapon. It's the yoke of discrimination, threats, harassment, exclusion, bullying, violence and unequal treatment - the same yoke born by the Samaritans and lepers. By the blind man blamed for his own affliction. By the woman at the well.

Read the rest at The Provocation.