Supreme Courts ruling on Same-sex Marriage



The last few days I have been studying the Supreme Court summary of the ruling that legalized gay marriage on June 26, 2015.  This has been a heavy read, and an overwhelming amount of viewpoints and information to process.  Through my study I have gained a better understanding of the law and Supreme courts and how they work much better than I originally did.  I do have to say that I felt Justice Kennedy delivered the opinion of the Court very effectively.  Many individual stories were shared and how they were individually affected by being denied the right to same sex-marriage, this was a powerful tool to use.  It is difficult to step back and view traditional vs. same-sex marriage without personal stories and emotions that this subject stirs.  One statement that was made to support same-sex marriages was “The First Amendment ensures that religious organizations and persons are given proper protection as they seek to teach the principles that are so fulfilling and so central to their lives and faiths, and to their own deep aspirations to continue the family structure they have long revered.” 

I believe this a great concern to those trying to protect traditional marriages when legalizing same-sex marriages will undeniably challenge the first amendment.  A few examples of these changes that some communities are already facing is the public school curriculum, the rights churches have as to what kinds of marriages they are able to perform, this affects religious agencies assisting in adoptions and counseling.  It has even affected small businesses and individuals in the workforce and refusing to provide services to same-sex families and couples.  While the Supreme Court denies the risk to religious freedom, it is already showing the ripple effects of this overturn.

 Justice Alito states this; “We can expect something similar to take place if same-sex marriage becomes widely accepted. The long-term consequences of this change are not now known and are unlikely to be ascertainable for some time to come. There are those who think that allowing same-sex marriage will seriously undermine the institution of marriage. Others think that recognition of same-sex marriage will fortify a now-shaky institution.”


The greatest truth is that the long-term consequences are not certain, but I feel that many proven facts on the benefits of traditional marriages, families, and children have been overlooked or their value was lessened during this ruling.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Purpose

Throughout my future posts I will be sharing facts regarding marriage and the importance not only on individuals, but also the benefit to families, children, and communities.  Join me as I research and learn more regarding this important topic.
Read more

Intimacy In Marriage

As we study physical intimacy and fidelity this week, the major point that stuck out to me was the attitude towards intimacy, especially within the church.   I feel like this is something that should be talked about more openly among the church.   In a world where we are constantly bombarded with sexualized images, innuendoes/references to sex, and glorifying physical satisfaction rather than the intimacy within a committed relationship.   We are so overwhelmed with these messages, there needs to be an equal amount of messages on the sacredness, respect, and beauty of intimate relationships to counteract the negative messages. My parents fulfilled a minimum obligation when it came talking about changes in our bodies but the conversation basically ended there, with a punctuation on not engaging in sexual relations before marriage.   I have no memory of my parents discussing sex with me or with any of my siblings.   Anytime sex was brought up it was clear th...
Read more

How can Hollywood impact marriage?

In The State of Our Unions Marriage in America , it provides a marriage agenda to our local and national leaders.   It states, “These proposals for federal and state policies and cultural change include eliminating marriage penalties and disincentives for the poor, for unwed mothers, and for older Americans; tripling the child tax credit; helping young men to become marriageable men; ending anonymous fatherhood; preventing unnecessary divorce; providing marriage education for newly-forming stepfamilies; investing in and evaluating marriage and relationship education programs; engaging Hollywood; launching social media campaigns about the facts and fun of marriage; and modeling how to talk about our shared marriage values despite our differences.” From this list of proposals I found two parts very interesting, helping young men to become marriageable men and engaging Hollywood.    The attitude about marriage and family in teenagers has remained h...
Read more