Hope

A. Hanson 2009

Last thursday, I posted about my sadness with regards to how the United Methodist Church decided to legislate that homosexuality was not compatible with Christian teachings.  Yesterday the state of North Carolina passed an amendment to their constitution that defined marriage as only between one man and one woman.  What strikes me as ironic is that the same people who are demanding a "smaller" government with regards to fiscal and social policy, are demanding that the government legislate love and marriage and commitment.

Also last thursday evening I learned that a civil unions bill made it out of a Colorado House of Representatives committee, and that it would go before Appropriations, and potentially be taken before the entire House.  Yesterday was that day.  By 4pm the bill had made it out of Appropriations and was to be debated by the House.  Yesterday was the last day of the legislative session in which bills could be debated.  In a moment of juvenile partisan politicking, the House Majority leader, Frank McNulty, decided to lead a filibuster for several hours which prevented the bill from even making it onto the floor.  The session closed amid insults and mudslinging from both sides.  Not only did this bill not make it through debate, but the filibuster took down 37 other bills too.  Many of my friends this morning were sad and my heart breaks for them.  The government attempts to tell them that their love is invalid.  Inferior.   At a morning coffee break with a group of friends from church, we were discussing this and how angry it makes us.  There are no words to take away how much this hurts people that we care about.  We could not comfort our friend in such pain this morning.

 But this afternoon Obama came out in support of gay marriage.  He is the first sitting President to do so.  And all I have to say is that it is about time.  Vice President Biden came out a few days ago in support of gay marriage.  This is really important.  I believe that the tides have changed, and while painfully slow, progress is being made.  The hateful vitriolic criticism is the dying gasp of the social conservatives.  Change is coming far too slowly, but it is coming. There is hope.  A tiny flickering little bit of hope.  And later on today, our governor called for a special session to debate the civil unions bill.  Light flickers in the darkness.

The problem is not about who loves whom.  It is about hate.   And there is so far to go.  As for me, I just keep praying that God will help me love the people with whom I disagree so deeply and that in turn, those who direct such hate towards my GLBTQ friends might soften their hearts a little too.  Then maybe we can meet in the middle and have a conversation.

"Outside ideas of right and wrong there is a field.  I will meet you there." -Rumi-