Imagine that you lived in a world where you couldn’t get married to certain people. Seems like a pretty absurd idea! This is the United States of America; an American has the freedom to marry who he/she will. Not So! A population exists in this country and all over the world (excluding the Netherlands) that is not allowed to share in the unity of marriage. So who are these people who cannot share our freedoms but pay the taxes for them? Homosexuals. The issues facing this civil case are legal and religious. However, legally this decision should be left up to churches, not states. The Declaration of Independence opens demanding freedom in the name of the “Laws of Nature and Nature’s God.” This statement is the backbone and first document of our government’s history. Our Forefathers declared that this should be a free place for people to live and that we would answer to the “Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God.” In this same document we declare, “All men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.” These lines along with statements from the constitution have been referred to in civil cases before same-sex marriages. The slaves declared they were equal, women declared we were equal, and other minority groups did the same. They all asked why Americans could they not have their “unalienable rights.” In 1978, in the case of Zablocki vs. Redhail, marriage was called “one of thebasic civil rights of man,” as well as “the most important relation in life,” and “the right to marry is part of the fundamental ‘right to privacy.” These quotes establish two points; the separation of church and state and the right to marriage. Article IV of the US Constitution gives states the right to decide cases individually. Section 1 of Article IV states: “Full faith and credit shall be given in each state to the public acts, records, and judicial proceedings of every other state. And the Congress may by general laws prescribe the manner in which such acts, records, and proceedings shall be proved, and the effect thereof.” They should not rely on pressure that other states will not follow. This case, like many other civil cases, is similar to a line of dominoes. The first domino has to fall somewhere. Article III of the Constitution has to do with the judicial part of the government. It says that all cases shall be given justice under the terms and laws of the constitution. Which, declared in the Declaration of Independence, answers to the “Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God.” There have been arguments made saying same-sex marriages are unconstitutional. However, legally they hold no grounds. The church and church issues are separate from state. Marriage holds a legal and a religious value. Denying two people marriage on grounds of words in the Bible is unconstitutional. This is not to denounce the Bible, religiously, as a legal source, however it belongs elsewhere. Same-sex marriage has made progress in a few places. Civil Unions are offered in Nova Scotia and in the State of Vermont. Something like it is offered in Denmark, France, Norway, Sweden, and California. The rights these places offer are not as extensive as Civil Unions though. The Netherlands have accepted same-sex marriages as a legal marriage. The British Columbia in Canada offers something called a “common law” relationship, which offers a little more, than Civil Unions but not quite as much as marriage. An Internet site, called the Second Class Action, made a great analogy to this situation. “Suppose you have two children in school. Suppose that the school doesn’t permit children to bring their own lunches but instead has a policy that parents send the children to school every day with $1.00 to defray the cost of lunch. Every day, your two children go to school with their dollars but without notice to you, the school has a policy that left-handed children may not eat with the “normal” right-handed kids. In fact, left-handed children are required to sit in the corner of the cafeteria until the other children are done eating. Your children are so embarrassed by this mistreatment that they never tell you about it. They simply go to school every day and turn in their money and not have lunch. Of course, there are other left-handed children in the school as well. Let’s say that out of 100 students, 10 of them are lefties. This means that the school is taking in $100 a day but spending only $90 a day to feed the “normal” children. As a result, they can improve the quality of lunches for the students who are permitted to eat. (For more arguments like this one go to http://www.secondclassaction.com/).” It makes sense though. We are all American citizens and we all pay taxes for these rights; it is unfair and unconstitutional to deny anyone their rights. The argument can be made that it is against the sacred Judao-Christian Tradition. This can be challenged! The Judao-Christian Tradition is a phrase used politically meaning religious freedom for all Americans. This statement was used to state that an American a person is free to practice their religion (peacefully). Homosexuals and bisexuals have a right to practice what they like. Though this statement seems to link church and state, it is more along the lines of freedoms. The issue of same-sex marriages should be considered in courtrooms. Our Constitution, other historical government documents and Supreme Court rulings have told us it is our duty to challenge the system when it does not follow under those due laws. The “Laws of Nature:” can be argued as religious and therefore against the act of same-sex marriages. These laws are not religious per say, they are merely the natural rights we each have as human beings, rights to freedom. Same-sex marriages are constitutional under the “Supreme Laws of the land.” The issues, why or why not, a religion accepts these marriages is a different challenge for the churches. Church and State for one reason are separate; The United States knows no one denomination.
Plymouth State University
Thursday, June 26, 2025