Prop. 8 sows marital discord
Re “Using God to push an agenda,” column, Oct. 22
We’ve been through this type of emotional issue before with the 1967 Loving vs. Virginia ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court regarding interracial marriage. We needed the court to protect a minority’s rights. This protection is designed into our Constitution.
It’s a shame to see some members of a minority using religion against another minority. Some do not consider gays to be a minority deserving of protection. In contrast, our state Supreme Court, in its carefully worded opinion, said this is indeed a group worthy of protection.
It is true that religion has gently guided our society from the earliest days. But is it appropriate that religion be used to eliminate rights of our citizens? This is common in the Middle East; is that a model we want here?
Joel Marks
Chatsworth
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Steve Lopez quotes the Rev. Eric P. Lee, who asks, “How many times have people hidden behind God for a specific agenda?”
The answer, of course, is many times. The most important examples in recent history are the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and many other clergymen in the civil rights movement, who went so far as to claim that God was on their side and was opposed to racial discrimination.
How arrogant can you get?
Marc Russell
Los Angeles
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Lopez’s sarcasm reaches its pitch when he states, “I always envy those who know precisely what Jesus would do.” But teaching God’s will is precisely what pastors are called to do. For those who do not attend church at all, it seems to come as a surprise that an evangelical pastor’s teachings are based on the Bible. So when Lopez mocks pastors’ support of Proposition 8, he should note that the Book of Leviticus refers to homosexuality as an abomination. The apostle Paul labels homosexuals as among “the wicked” who will not inherit the kingdom of God.
Like it or not, that’s what the book says.
Mitchell Harris
La Verne
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After reading Lopez’s column, I believe what we need is a proposition on a future state ballot that would amend the California Constitution to not allow Christians to get married.
Glenn M. Langdon
Garden Grove