While Culture Gets on SSM Bandwagon, Take Comfort in Church

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When I was a kid, same sex marriage was not something anyone talked about. Everyone understood that marriage united a man and a women-legally, physically, and spiritually—and the institution united them with their children.

As a matter of fact, people would have thought you were mad to suggest two men or two women getting married. Now, stating that such a thing is wrong is what results in cultural judgment.

So what do we do? It can make us feel so alone. This is what we shall do. We stay strong, keep our heads up high, and think: Well, what did you expect, to drive off into the sunset in an RV’s or rather to march to the beat of a Catholic drummer?

Every single one of us knows saint stories of Catholic martyrs. Sure, back when we vowed that we too would die for our faith, we did not really think it would happen. And so far, in this country, it isn’t happening. At least not physical deaths. Yet, we are dying inside. It’s hard to explain that we really do love the person but hate the sin. The hardest part is trying to explain what sin is when so many people are celebrating it.

We can take comfort in being Catholic. Our Church is staying the course—always has and always will. Regarding the recent Supreme Court decision paving the way for more states to legalize same-sex marriages, The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops issued a statement:

“Millions of Americans had looked to the court with hope, that these unjust judicial decisions might be reversed. The Court’s action fails to resolve immediately the injustice of marriage redefinition and, therefore, should be of grave concern to our entire nation.”

That makes me feel a bit better. We are not alone. The whole world is not going crazy, just large sections of it. I’m sitting here in North Dakota, a state that has held strong to the legal and moral definition of marriage as being a union between one man and one woman. And now? We will have to hunker down and wait.

Legal experts suggest that the court’s decision will reverberate and shake loose all the old fashioned marriage laws to redefine marriage to mean something it never has meant before in the history of the world. The prediction is that same-sex couples will have their way. But having our own way is not the way to heaven. So, we will continue to cling to God’s way.

As we navigate conversations with a liberal culture, we will not betray God’s teaching on marriage between a man and a woman, where the two shall become one in the way God intended. It’s a temperamental crowd that propels the homosexual movement, a tsunami that has swept many out to sea. We will keep loving and praying for all. We will take comfort in our Catholic Church and celebrate that our fortress has not been also been sucked in by the cultural ripe tides. We will stand firm and fight for our religious freedom, that means not being penalized for speaking the truth.

It’s a social experiment doomed to failure. I am just so very, absolutely, and completely grateful that I am a member of the Catholic Church who will never accommodate a redefinition of marriage. Imagine if we belonged to another Christian Church where marriage has been redefined. What a lonely feeling that would be. Instead, we are in the company of over 2,000 years of Catholic leadership that has stayed the course. We are in the company of angels and the saints that have gone before us. And we are in the company of Catholics, who know, that regardless of what the Supreme Court rules, God rules.

When the sun comes up tomorrow, we will still be able to practice our religion, go to Church, say our prayers, read Catholic news and resist the current. We can even get a cheeseburger or Chick fil A, shop at Hobby Lobby and pray in front of an abortion clinic.

God is allowing crazy things to happen, but he is still God, and we can take comfort in his never-changing ways. He’ll eventually let everyone else in on this too. In the meantime, “May the Lord of peace give you his peace at all times and in every way. May the Lord be with all of you, (2 Thessalonians 3:16).

Image: by PollyG, SA, Pixabay