What is Marriage?

Same Sex Marriage — What Say You?

“If we truly love each other why don’t we have the freedom to marry whomever we want regardless of gender?”  

Sounds right doesn’t it?  I mean who is against freedom?  

However on second thought what do we mean by freedom and is it true we are free to choose to do whatever we want?  Really?  Freedom is not the ability to do whatever we want but the power to do what is right.  Yes, we have freedom but not absolute freedom to do whatever we want.  

I heard a man on the radio use this analogy. He said, “ just as we should not discriminate and prohibit people from two different races from marrying so also we should not prohibit two people of the same sex to marry. They should be free to marry whomever they want.”   Is he serious?  As Dennis Prager has stated, “There are enormous differences between men and women, but there are no differences between people of different races. Men and women are inherently different, but blacks and whites (and yellows and browns) are inherently the same. Therefore, any imposed separation by race can never be moral or even rational; on the other hand, separation by sex can be both morally desirable and rational. Separate bathrooms for men and women is moral and rational; separate bathrooms for blacks and whites is not.”

We are not free to marry whomever we wish and there are many good reasons for this.  We are not free to marry a family member — incestual marriage is an illegitimate marriage.  We are not free to marry another if we are already married — polygamy is illegitimate.  Why are these two examples taboo?  And what right do we have to continue to say these are illegitimate marriages if we permit same sex marriage?  In doing so, don’t we open Pandora’s Box to all sorts of possible so-called marriages?  If not, why not?  

Why should we care who marries whom?  Marriage is the oldest institution of mankind.  It is over 5,000 years old and exists in every single human culture around the globe.  Every culture, every civilization, every religion has recognized marriage as that of between the two sexes: a man and a woman.  Why is this?

There are two questions that need to be asked in answering the original question of being free to marry whomever we want.

The first is, “What is marriage?” The second is, “Why does the government have an interest in regulating marriage?”   

The issue today is not ultimately about same sex marriage, but about marriage itself.  “Marriage is, of its essence, a comprehensive union of will (by consent) and body (by sexual union); inherently ordered to procreation and thus the broad sharing of family life; and calling for permanent and exclusive commitment, whatever the spouses’ preferences.”  (What is Marriage by Girgis Sherif; Anderson, Ryan T.; George Robert P.)

If same-sex “marriage” is allowed, then we misunderstand what marriage really is.  It becomes simply an emotional union versus a comprehensive union.  If marriage is merely an emotional union, then what is the difference between marriage and a deep friendship?  

We don’t legislate friendships and thus the government should not be interested in legislating marriage if marriage is nothing more than an emotional union.  However, even though emotional union is important in marriage, it is much more than that.  Marriage as defined above is a unique union which can only take place between a man and a woman.  It is the basic building block of the family and of society.  It is for this reason that the State has a vested interested in protecting traditional marriage.  For, in doing this, it helps to protect and sustain itself.  

If two people of the same sex want to live together and commit immorality, that is their choice but don’t call it marriage.