I was in my English class today when I heard the announcement.
The Supreme Court had overturned the stay that was issued to stop gay
marriages in Idaho after they had deemed that banning them was
unconstitutional. I'm not going to lie, I threw my hands up in a
"TOUCHDOWN!!!!" position. You would not believe the weird looks I
received. But let me tell you, it felt like my team had just won the
Super Bowl after a history of loosing every single game. I was ecstatic!
Marriage equality is finally a reality in my very red, very
conservative state.
I often receive some well intentioned
and some not so well intentioned scorn from members of my faith whenever
they learn of my views on the subject. Let me be clear. My opinions of
the morality of the subject align with those of church doctrine. In
order to have an eternal family, a temple sealed marriage between a man
and a woman is essential. Homosexuality is not a sin; however, engaging
in homosexual acts is. My faith in the doctrine of this matter has never wavered.
But, I recognize that my faith and testimony do not run the United
States, nor do I want it to. I realize that many wonderful US citizens
have felt discriminated against and alienated by members of my community and church.
This breaks my heart! Too often members of my church forget the "Judge
not, that ye be not judged" (Matthew 7:1 KJV) part of Christ's
teachings. Too often do they make certain children of Heavenly Father
feel like they're not welcome in our churches, homes, or communities.
This is something I've tried to combat for such a long time. To me,
awarding LGBTQ US citizens the same right to marry that most of us take
for granted is a step in the right direction. It's a movement towards
love and away from hate. I'm not saying that those who do not support same sex marriage are hateful. I'm simply reiterating the statement released by the church that reads "Church
leaders will continue to
encourage our people to be persons of good will toward all, rejecting
persecution of any kind based on race, ethnicity, religious belief or
non-belief, and differences in sexual orientation" (Mormon News Room).
If we want others to respect our lifestyle of modesty, abstinence, and
faithful worship, we too need to respect their lifestyles, no matter how
different they may be from our own, without discriminating in any way, shape, or
form.
On a lighter
note, Malala Yousafzai was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize today! What an
inspiration! A young girl, faced with insurmountable hardship,
had her life put on the line by the Taliban. She was hospitalized after receiving a bullet to the head. Thankfully she recovered and a year
later decided to address the UN. Even with the threat of murder, she
continued to voice her opinions on education for all people, especially
girls. This put her into world wide spotlight and Malala handled it with
grace. In her famous speech to the UN she states "I speak not for myself, but so those without a voice can be heard. Those
who have fought for their rights. Their right to live in peace. Their
right to be treated with dignity. Their right to equality of
opportunity. Their right to be educated." (International Business Times). This beautiful girl has brought so much hope to such a dark and war torn world. Here's a lovely video of her interview with Jon Stewart.
Have a great night everyone!
Cheers!
Syd
Sources:
http://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/church-response-supreme-court-announcement
http://www.ibtimes.com/malala-yousafzais-nobel-peace-prize-win-reaction-watch-online-live-stream-1702944
hhttps://www.lds.org/scriptures/nt/matt/7.7?lang=eng
