The Seattle Stranger offers an intimate glimpse into the clash of gay and Mormon cultures triggered by the California Supreme Court's decision to strike down the state's ban on same-sex marriage.Writer David Schmader's marriage to Dolly Parton-adoring Jake is threatened by a ticking time bomb beyond the usual nightmare of joining two families.
..Mixed among the approving in Jake's family are those who are forbidden to approve, explicitly and eternally, on religious grounds. Specifically, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, under whose guidance both sides of Jake's family have conducted their earthly existences for generations.
For Mormons, family is forever, David explains, "Unless a family member is gay."
I'd like to say that hilarity ensues as David describes Jake's Mormon family's struggles with homosexuality, faith and wedding planning. Jake's sister recently had gotten word from God to marry in the temple before her father voluntarily allowed his temple recommend to expire. She married a returned missionary she had known only a few weeks. The hypocrisy of the event disgusts Schmader as much as his wedding plans disgust Jake's family.
And if you think being invited to attend a Mormon wedding is weird, imagine being invited to stand around outside one. . . .
Still, if they could grin and bear it when their family-damning son brought home his gay lover to meet the folks and sleep in the same bed, I could grin and bear it through a barely legal, beat-the-clock, sham-sacred wedding. Tolerance is a two-way street, and smiling politely at each other's insanity is a big part of what family's all about.
5 Comments:
Contrary to public opinion, many (if not most) mormons are not homophobic idiots who are blithely indifferent to the complexities of sexual attraction. It would be refreshing to see journalists and/or bloggers abstain from smearing over the enormous individual differences among the adherents of a religion with one big streak of "INTOLERANT."
I have determinted that the Mormon Church itself is gay. The first sign is how overly homophobic it is.
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My lingering suspicion that lawyers tend to be weenies seems to have been verified.
It's really not that complicated. If the government is going to be involved in the marriage business, than it needs to not discriminate between which consenting adults can have access to the privileges and responsibilities that the government bestows upon those legally recognized as "married".
I have a hunch that it's the "conservative family values" adherents that are unwilling to give up the government provided perks that come with that big government involvement in the private lives of citizens (seems vaguely hypocritical to me). Thus, the only way to have their cake and keep those gay folks from having cake is to kick up a huge fuss and act like everyone (that doesn't agree with them) is out to get them and steal all the cake.
I wonder how they teach their kids about fairness....
The gay-marriage-will-lead-to-legalized-polygamous-marriages argument is total bullshit.
If we are really worried about that -- and no one really is, by the way -- than let's get rid of heterosexual marriage and legalize gay marriage. Heterosexual marriages are more likely to lead to polygamous marriages since polygamous marriages are heterosexual as well.
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