Gay Marriage

Gay Marriage

Gay marriage has been a major issue in our society over the past few years. Since it was legalized in some states, there has been much debate on whether or not it should be allowed or even considered a marriage. What makes gay marriage different from heterosexual marriage? In an attempt to discuss both points of view on the subject, I will show you my point of view along with some other peoples' views.

First of all, there is point of view traditionally known to be a Christian one. This one involves only heterosexual marriages to be binding. People believe that above all else, we must surrender to a higher authority on this matter, God. A marriage can only be considered binding when it is between a man and a woman. All other unions are not binding, and therefore, not true marriages (Shell 3-16).

The other point of view is normally categorized as a liberal one. This goes against the teaching of the Catholic Church, and focuses more on individual rights of a US citizen. Freedom is the matter at hand when dealing with issue. These people believe that it shouldn't matter what the sex is of the people getting married. It is a symbol of love and unity to them, and they deserve the right just like anyone else does. They also believe that they should get the same legal benefits and status of any other married couple. An argument on this side says that infertile heterosexual couples are the same as gay couples when it comes to marriage, because neither is able to procreate. This has been a major problem with the issue (Leiblum 1).

When I sit down and look at both sides, I have to wonder how I really feel on the issue. Being raised as a Catholic all my life has certainly had an effect on how I feel about gay marriage. Growing up over the years and being exposed to many different points of view has made me look at not just gay marriage in a different way, but all other issues. Not thinking about it from a Catholic or a liberal point of view, I look at the hard evidence. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion on what is right and wrong, but some things can be determined by simply looking at physical nature and facts. For example, if I were to look up the word "marriage" in the dictionary, it is very clearly stated in the first definition as "a legal union of a man and a woman as husband and wife." Breaking it down into simplest terms is easy to see that when people of the same sex want to get married, it is not possible because marriage is clearly defined that only people of the opposite sex can be called a marriage.

When God created man and woman, looking at the anatomy of both the male and female body tells another truth. Procreation is only possible between a man and woman. It is not possible for a man and another man, or a woman and another woman to conceive a child. Therefore, looking at it from a scientific point of view, man and woman were meant to be together from the start. I don't need to go into sexual terms on what is meant for intercourse. Plain and simple, a man and woman are the only ones that can procreate. That is what should be looked at first. Even if the man or woman is infertile, just looking at the physical dynamics shows men and women are meant to be together. I do not deny that there can be a physical and emotional attraction and union between two people of the same sex, but I just don't agree with marriage as an option for them. One of the main reasons why I do not believe in same sex marriage is the ability for anyone to take advantage of insurance. With the legalization of gay marriage, it is possible to for two people of the same sex to get married solely for the purpose of gaining insurance benefits, not for their love and attraction. This causes taxes to rise and continues to weigh down on our economy. When I have to start paying for other people scamming the government, I take it personally as a US citizen, not as a straight individual.

One major reason that has been debated upon is that children should be raised