Readers React: Minnesota's Gay Marriage Amendment

On Oct. 31, Golden Valley Patch published an article about Spirit of Hope United Methodist Church Pastor Edwin DuBose's recent sermon.

Out of thousands of sermons, on Sunday, Oct. 28, for the first time, DuBose shared how he will vote on a particular issue in an election. DuBose told his congregation that he's voting 'no' on Minnesota's marriage amendment.

Patch readers immediately reacted to the article and shared their own opinions on the amendment, and its place in church. Will Waylon disagreed with DuBose's choice to vote 'no' on the amendment. "Dubose's stance may make him feel good, but it's against the word of God," Waylon wrote in the comments section on Patch. "Does he then also agree that it's not fair to limit marriage to just one person, those under 16, or blood relatives?"

Julie agreed with Waylon. "It really makes me so sad when pastors do such a disservice to their church by not following the word of God," Julie wrote. "Dubose says to take your soul to the polls, but more importantly, we need to remember that someday our souls will be presented before God, who will be judging our decisions and lifestyles."

While both Julie and Waylon said that voting 'no' on the amendment was against the Christian religion, a few other readers agreed with DuBose.

Kelly had this to say:

This is a constitutional issue, not a religious one. Among other things, marriage is a civil contract, and a fundamental tenet of our country and its founding father and documents is that all men are created equal and entitled to equal rights. Gays should equal rights to marry.

As for "God's definition of marriage," that definition is obviously open to interpretation. I'm struck by those who use the Bible as a definitive.literal source, yet choose to ignore many of its passages, such as those pertaining to slavery, adultery, how people should pray, the ability of rich people to get into heaven, loving one another as yourself, turning the other cheek, leaving judgment to the Lord, etc. Moreover, as with religion itself, interpretations of the Bible vary from religion to religion, church to church, pastor to pastor, and individual to individual.

That's why the intersection of religion and legislation is messy, and one of the reasons why the founding fathers did not make our country a theocracy. They did not make us a Christian nation (as clearly spelled out in the Treaty of Tripoli), and to the extent we suggest or pretend that it is otherwise, we are unpatriotic.

Paul David Stanko added this statement to Kelly's comments:

Actually, the Bible has MANY definitions of marriage, and none of them are in practice today in western culture. I applaud Rev. DuBoise and the congregation of Spirit of Hope UMC for taking a stand for Christ's teachings of love, acceptance and redemption. All that SHOULD matter to Christians.

Lori Martin said there needs to be separation of church and state. "Voting yes is to vote to discriminate against a specific group of people," Martin wrote. "Marriage between two persons of the same sex is already illegal in this state. We do not need to pass an amendment to make it permanently illegal."

vicki trattar said:

To Will and Julie...My God loves me the way I am. My God loves you, too. Please don't YOU forget what Julie put so well..."we need to remember that someday our souls will be presented before God, who will be judging our decisions and lifestyles."