Gay Marriage: Culture, Religion, and Society

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Table of Contents

Introduction
Views of Religion
Ethnicity and Same Sex Marriage
Views of People from Different Age Groups
Conclusion
References

Introduction

In the recent past, people have stood up to fight for various rights which they deem are vital for them. Various civil rights groups have been formed to enhance the fight for human rights. Among the rights that people want is the freedom to marry a person of their choice. As a result, same sex marriages are increasingly becoming the order of the day.

These discussions have found their way to the politics of various states in the US. Consequently, gay marriages have been legalized by various state governments. However, gay marriage rights have elicited furious debates among various groups of people. Some people were supporting the rights while others were critically opposing the idea.

Views of Religion

Religious groups are among the groups that oppose gay marriages to the latter. It should be noted that religious groups base their teachings on the readings of the holy book. According to many versions of the modern Bible, Christians are only allowed to marry people from the opposite sex.

Same sex marriages are thus a sin and one cannot be allowed to continue being a member of the church after engaging himself in same sex marriage (Donovan & Tolbert, 2013). Particularly, the Bible prohibits Christians from engaging in homosexuality and this is no different from gay marriages.

It is obvious that there are people who will want their same sex marriages to be solemnized in church. This will require a church minister to preside over the marriage. However, according to Christian teachings, God does not allow gay marriages. Everybody in the Bible was married to a person from the opposite sex.

God created a woman and a man before joining them in the first marriage (Baunach, 2012). As a result, gay marriages go against traditional way of doing things as well as against what society generally regards as being right. This is the same view that is held by Muslims.

When a child is born in a Christian or an Islamic family, he or she is taught the right way of doing things according to the Bible or the Quran respectively. This child will grow up basing his or her way of life and personal values on these teachings (Baunach, 2012). In this regard, the arguments that gay marriage is against tradition and what God demands of his people are dependent of how one was raised. These beliefs will never change given that religious teachings are not dynamic.

Nevertheless, there are other churches that have publicly supported gay marriages. This liberal stand has emanated from the diverse interpretations of the Bible. Some biblical scholars have argued that the terms homosexuality and lesbianism have just emerged due to translations of the bible and they are not found in the original Bible.

As a result, this group of Christians does not find any problem supporting same sex marriages and even presiding over same sex weddings in church (Becker, 2012). It is important to note that these are also personal views and it is difficult to dispute them.

Ethnicity and Same Sex Marriage

Arguably, ethnicity is very crucial in shaping a person’s mind. Our cultural background determines what we consider as being right or wrong. The approach that we may have to various issues in life is highly dependent on how we were brought up. While some ethnical groups allow for change in various issues, others are conservatives. Consequently, people from various ethnic groups have different views regarding the issue of same sex marriage (Encarnacion, 2011).

Research has shown that most proponents of gay marriages view same sex marriage as a civil rights issue that is protected by the constitution. This is the view held by ethnic groups that are found in areas where traditions are not strictly followed. Conservative ethnic groups do not allow their people to go against traditional culture. Every member is brought up strictly following what their fore fathers considered as being right (Brewer & Wilcox, 2013). These people include the Indian Americans especially those on the reservations.

To them, gay marriage is completely out of context and they cannot even imagine that people of the same sex can marry. As a result, majority of them completely oppose gay marriages. Latinos and some African Americans are also against gay marriages. This can be attributed to the fact that most of this ethnic groups base their teachings strictly on the Bible. Moreover, to them traditional values are crucial and should be maintained (Donovan & Tolbert, 2013).

Another ethnic group comprises of people from Asia. Notably, people from Korea and China respect community and family more than an individual. Moreover, they believe that their culture does not allow same sex marriage. Therefore, most Chinese as well as Korean people oppose same sex marriage (Brewer & Wilcox, 2013). Moreover, Latinos, African Americans and Chinese people face a lot of discrimination if they publicly confess to be gay or even lesbians.

On the contrary, whites have been brought up in a more liberal society. They have a higher acceptance of diverse behaviors among people. Additionally, they have less strict adherence to religious teachings. As a result, many of them either support same sex marriage or do not see anything wrong about it. This is because white people do not strictly subscribe to traditions. On the same note, many white people have embraced modernity and are therefore more likely to accept gays and lesbians in the community (Encarnacion, 2011).

However, not all white people support same sex marriage. There are those who have personal convictions that same sex marriage is wrong. On the other hand, people of color are preservative and talking about same sex marriage is a taboo in some cases. As a result, gay people find it difficult to be open about their status. Lack of openness and sexual education has contributed to the negative reception of same sex marriages.

Views of People from Different Age Groups

Arguably, age is very crucial when it comes to voting over any issue. People from different age groups usually have different ideologies and will thus have diverse perspectives over any issue. Gay marriages are not an exception. It is important to note that gay marriages are getting increased support in the recent times compared to earlier years (Becker, 2012). This has been attributed to increased support from young people who attain voting age.

The youth are more liberal when it comes to issues of life. They want to associate themselves to modernity. On the same note, many young people usually want to drift from what the old generation used to believe in. This group of people also believes in freedom of choice that allows people to do what they think is good for them. Therefore, majority of proponents of gay marriages are young people (Brewer & Wilcox, 2013).

On the other hand, as people grow old they become more skeptical about the idea of gay marriages. Similarly, the old generation of people was brought up in a more reserved environment.

Religion was more influential in the ancient years compared to nowadays. Therefore, older people were taught to believe that same sex marriage is against their culture (Donovan & Tolbert, 2013). Additionally, older people think that it is morally wrong for people of the same sex to marry each other. To them, Gay marriage is a sign of moral decay in the society.

According to older people, marriage should be based on love and children should be born out of it. However, same sex marriage is depicted as a union that is not only solely based on sex, but also one that does not fulfill the basic function of marriage which is procreation.

They, therefore, do not see the need of having same sex marriage when people will end up adopting children. Marriage was meant to ensure continuity of mankind. But same sex marriage does not meet this (Baunach, 2012). It is personal convictions of the older people that gay marriage is a wrong move.

Conclusion

The right of people to marry a person of their choice provided that they are both of legal age is enshrined in the constitution. One cannot be forced to marry a person that he or she does not want. However, the constitution does not explicitly state whether same sex marriages are allowed or not. As a result, there has been a long standing debate regarding rights of gay people. Different groups of people have different ideas about the issue. It remains to be seen who will eventually take the day.

References

Baunach, D. M. (2012). Changing Same-Sex Marriage Attitudes in America from 1988 through 2010. Public Opinion Quarterly, 76(2), 364-378.

Becker, A. B. (2012). Determinants of Public Support for Same-Sex Marriage: Generational Cohorts, Social Contact, and Shifting Attitudes. International Journal of Public Opinion Research, 24(4), 524-533.

Brewer, P. & Wilcox, C. (2013). Same Sex Marriage and Civil Unions. Public Opinion Quarterly, 69(4), 599-616.

Donovan, T. & Tolbert, C. (2013). Do Popular Vote on Rights Create Animosity Toward Minorities? Political Research Quarterly, 66(4), 910-922.

Encarnacion, O. G. (2011). Latin America’s gay-Rights Revolution. Journal of Democracy, 22(2), 104-118.

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