The Rev. Janet P. Moore is the author of the commentary.

THE STRUGGLE DOES CONTINUE!

Marriage between two people of opposite sex or same sex is a commitment or covenant.  It is a commitment in secular terms for those who seek a civil ceremony.  It is a covenant between two persons in a religious setting with God at the Apex.  Nevertheless, living together in a loving committed, covenantal relationship is the desire of most couples who marry.  Some couples live together without the covering of marriage, and live freely without the pressure from the Church or Society.  Yet, both offer many sanctioned benefits for being married.  Those include having children that enhances the union as a family.  The Constitution supports the right to pursue happiness in marriage.  Laws enable couples to inherit wealth or to legally transfer property.

However, the historical record demonstrates the injustices experienced by couples in our society who were slaves, interracial, and same sex.  Slaves were not allowed to marry but, they jumped the broom as a symbol of their union.  Mr. and Mrs. Loving of Virginia, an interracial couple, had to take their case to the United States Supreme Court in order to marry each other.  Virginia’s anti-interracial marriage laws were a denial of their civil rights, human rights, and the right to pursue happiness.  Presently, most states deny same -sex couples the right and privilege to marry, thus denying them equality of marriage. In my opinion, the Church which should be in the forefront of this issue is on the wrong side of history again.  It grieves me to see African-American clergy discriminate or deny any group it’s human, civil, political, or economic justice and equality of marriage.  To deny gay couples equality of marriage is to treat them just as we were treated by the Church and the society.

My question to church pastors and especially African-American clergy is how do you minister to gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered (LGBT) persons within your congregations?  How do you reconcile your actions against these people with the Scriptural message to love God with all of your heart, soul, and mind; and to love your neighbor as you love yourself?  Opposing same-sex marriage means you would prefer them to live in fornicational relationships as opposed to living in covenantal relationships? I think marriage would solve this moral, ethical, inequality issue.

Several years ago, while attending the Samuel DeWitt Proctor Conference, I was asked: “What do you think about same sex marriage”?  My reply was: As a married person of forty-seven years, I was more concerned about heterosexual marriages and their decline. I am most concerned about the high numbers in the divorce rates. I am
concerned about the high rates of infidelity, and the high rates of couples who choose not to marry but choose to cohabitate without walking down the aisle.  In other words, heterosexuals need to get the “stuff” out of their eyes before they oppose the gay community. Mind you, the person asking this question was in her second marriage and her husband was in his third marriage.  Lord, have mercy upon us!

In addition, it disturbs me to hear the critique, “homosexuals have a sexual orientation or a sexual choice – NOT!  All humans have sexuality!  We are all sexual beings.  Gay and straight people have a different sexuality.  Now, because it is different is not a reason to deny them the right to love and marry whom they choose.  Furthermore, their getting married will not affect the family as some argue. There are many different structural dynamics to the family.  A family can consist of a mother and a father; two mothers or two fathers; a single mother or a single father; one father and five step-mothers; or one mother and five step-fathers.  Whatever the makeup, children fare better in homes that are loving, nurturing, peaceful, and harmonious whether straight or gay.

The struggle for justice continues!

Rev. Janet P. Moore