2015-APR-19: Events during the week (Cont'd):

• The Marianas Variety web site states that:

  "[Roman Catholic] Archbishop Anthony Apuron said that same-sex marriage is against the Catholic faith. Apuron said and such unions are not able to contribute in a proper way to the procreation and survival of the human race. Furthermore, the archbishop also said homosexual tendencies are a moral evil, according to the article. ₁

  Webmaster's note:

  Archbishop Apuron's comment is correct as far as the teachings of the Catholic Church are concerned. Many same-sex female couples do use artificial insemination or in-vitro fertilization in order to conceive and bear children. Some same-sex male couples also use artificial insemination and a willing surrogate woman to bear children. However, both processes are not allowed by the Church and thus are not considered "proper."
  
  I posted a comment to the Marianas Variety's article, stating:

"Archbishop Anthony Apuron allegedly said that said homosexual tendencies are a moral evil.

Somebody has scrambled the official stand of the Roman Catholic Church. The church has said that homosexual tendencies -- called homosexual orientation by most authorities -- are not chosen, are often an unwanted burden on the individual, and are not immoral or evil. On the other hand, the Church considers that for any person to engage in same-gender sexual behavior is immoral. The Church expects persons with a homosexual orientation to remain celibate and without an intimate partner for the rest of their life." ₁

I was pleasantly surprised that this comment was approved by the moderator.

• Within four days, the article in Marianas Variety had received 11 comments. ₂ Some were viciously anti-Roman Catholic. Others were worth reading, including the following:

• "tim120809" posted:

  "Marriage has long been redefined! Married couples are allowed to divorce. Why do you prevent people from doing what they want to do? Let them marry for goodness' sake!! If you don't agree with them then don't marry gay people! But let gay men and women marry whomever they like."

• Dave Gonzalez posted:

  "I do not understand the Church's stance on same-sex marriage. If the Church encourages straight people to be in monogamous relationships, for the benefit of themselves, society, and raising children, then wouldn't it follow that two people in a mutually monogamous relationship, regardless of their sexual orientation or gender, also benefit spiritually, and be a benefit to society and in raising children? Also, it seems that if the Church were concerned about the well being of children, they would be supportive of two people getting married, because they would then receive the benefits that would in turn benefit the children they are raising, regardless of the gender identities of the parents involved?"

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• "670huntress" posted:

  "Even tho it always has, religion shouldn't influence state decisions. EQUALITY is all they seek."

• "Gumagalagu" posted:

  "... Such a bizarrely oblivious series of statements and so ironic on multiple levels, particularly in the context of our own culture's history, pre-Catholic traditions and eventual Christianization."

• "Long Time Resident" posted:

  "1. Nothing in the change offends religious freedom. The church may continue to define marriage according to its religious beliefs. Nothing in the change in law will change that foundational block of the Catholic faith, just as legalized divorce has not changed the church's teaching on the sacrament of marriage.
  
  2. I suspect that the church leaders are the ones who are out of touch with "reality." There is very much reality that supports permitting persons to marry and obtain the benefits the state confers on such unions.
  
  3. Supporting families as the foundation of our culture and our society does not require defining family so narrowly that it precludes relationships based on choice, love and commitment. This is not required for civil purposes, even if it is necessary and fundamental to a particular religious view.
  
  4. While same-sex marriages may not contribute to pro-creation, they can contribute to the survival of the species because they can provide more family homes to adopt and care for children who need parents. ..."

• Kathleen Aguero who is attempting to marry Loretta Pangelinan -- the person that she loves and to whom has made a lifetime commitment -- said that they are:

  "... standing up for our right. It has nothing to do with the church or anything. It’s our right to marry the person we love, which is each other." ₂

2015-APR-25 & 26: Two earthquakes shake Guam:

An earthquake measuring 5.1 on the open-ended Richter Scale shook Guam on the afternoon of APR-25. It would have been felt by everyone on the island, and might have caused damage to poorly constructed buildings. An after-shock of magnitude 4.7 occurred on the afternoon of APR-26. It would have been felt by most people, but probably cause little if any damage. Both quakes would have been recorded on seismographs throughout the world.

We include this item because many religious conservatives believe that God does not approve of same-sex marriage. Some believe that he may show his displeasure through earthquakes, tsunamis, hurricanes, etc. of frightening intensity -- even causing loss of life, in those areas that legalize same-sex marriage. ₃

This topic continues in the next essay

References used:

The following information sources were used to prepare and update the above essay. The hyperlinks are not necessarily still active today.

1. Jasmine Stole, "Guam Archbishop: Don’t redefine marriage," Marianas Variety, 2015-APR-22, at: http://www.mvariety.com/
2. Unfortunately, we cannot locate the Internet source where her comments were published.
3. Richter magnitude scale," Wikipedia, as on 2015-APR-26, at: http://en.wikipedia.org/

Copyright © 2015 by Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance
Originally published: 2015-APR-26
Last updated 2015-MAY-18
Author: Bruce A Robinson

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