Should We Use the Bible in the Marriage Debate?

At first, the question seems unnecessary. Of course we will use the Bible in the coming great debate over marriage. How could Christians avoid the Bible? And why should we?

Before answering that question, consider an article by Don Wycliff, the "public editor" of the Chicago Tribune. On Thursday the paper published his column called Challenging the media's `pro-gay' tenor. The quotes around "pro-gay" are part of the headline. Mr. Wycliff begins by noting that many social conservatives believe that the mainstream media is solidly pro-gay, and that this bias is evident in the news articles covering the gay marriage debate. After doing a search of the 334 articles in the Tribune which the phrase "gay marriage" appeared in 2004. Here is his conclusion:

About 50 stories into the exercise, a pattern was clear: In opinion articles and letters to the editor, there was a decided tilt in favor of gay marriage. But in news articles there was no discernible bias either for or against. It was very much the Joe Friday formula: "Just the facts, ma'am."

As a regular reader of the Tribune, I can vouch for what he says. The articles tend to reasonably balanced; editorials and opinion pieces are definitely pro-gay. Toward the end of the article, Mr. Wycliff says that he spoke with two thoughtful representatives of traditional marriage. He was surprised by what he heard:

One personal observation: After talking at some length with LaBarbera and Valente, I was surprised to discover that their arguments are not essentially religious. That is, they do not require that one accept their faith in order to believe their argument.

That is a big step forward for those arguing their position. It may not, ultimately, be a convincing step, but it at least represents a recognition that in a political debate they need to speak in terms that all citizens can understand and, potentially, be convinced by.

First, however, they need to persuade us in the media to put their arguments into the public arena.

 

That's how the article ends. Two comments are in order. First, the paper is a private enterprise--not a government entity. They are free to publish what they want and to exclude what they want. Second, there are some very good non-religious arguments for traditional marriage and against gay marriage. Those of us who believe legalizing gay marriage would be catastrophic need to know those arguments, and we need to learn how to articulate them clearly and without anger. Truth with a smile (or at least without a frown) ought to be our goal.

But having said that, I want to add one final thought about the implication in Mr.. Wycliff's column that "religious arguments" are somehow out of place in the public square. It would be dangerous for Christians to adopt a "two-kingdom" approach to moral issues. That is, we quote Scripture to each other in church, but we put the Bible away when we speak to the larger culture. That's a tragic mistake. It's easy to fall into the trap of saying, "If people don't believe the Word of God, we shouldn't quote it because they won't accept it anyway." That reflects a worldly sort of wisdom that assumes God's Word has no inherent power. Hebrews 4:12-13 tells us that the Word of God is shaper than any two-edged sword. It cuts through all our pious excuses and lays bare the thoughts and intents of the heart. When Paul listed the weapons of spiritual warfare in Ephesians 6:10-17, he only mentions one offensive weapon-- "the sword of the Spirit, the Word of God"  (v. 17).

Let's be clear about what this means. The Bible is the Word of God whether we believe it or not. It doesn't become God's Word because we believe it. Our belief or unbelief does not change the nature of God's truth. Suppose I take a knife out of my pocket, open the blade, and tell you, "This knife is extremely sharp. It will cut you if you aren't careful." And you say, "I don't believe that knife is sharp. It won't hurt me." There are two ways to resolve the question. We can debate the likelihood that the knife is sharp. We could spend hours talking about the blade, how it was sharpened, the makeup of the metal, the curvature of the knife, and so forth. Or I could simply take the knife and cut you. When you start bleeding, you'll know the knife is sharp.

If we truly believe what God says about homosexuality, we ought to say so publicly. I agree with those who say that shouldn't be our only argument, but I disagree with those who say we should never quote the Bible when moral issues are being discussed in the public square. The fact that the Bible makes some people angry proves that the sword is doing its work.

In the great debate unfolding in the Senate, in the newspapers, around the water cooler, and in every office and every neighborhood in America, we need to use every weapon in our arsenal. Let's appeal to research, to history, to natural law, to the universal tradition of heterosexual marriage, and to the very real dangers of gay marriage. But don't leave your sword in the scabbard. Use the sword of the Spirit to speak God's truth. Let the Word do its work even if it makes some people unhappy.

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