In his attempt to overcome the ‘secularist’ charge and to prove he understands religion, Howard Dean said this week, “rom a religious point of view, if God had thought homosexuality is a sin, he would not have created gay people.” Let me start by noting that if this statement is typical of the quality of Dean’s thinking “from a religious point of view,” it’s not hard to figure out why Dean isn’t religious. Even if he isn’t religious, he’s not an idiot, either, so his argument must have made sense according to his secular worldview. (Andrew Sullivan seems to... Read more »
Posts Tagged ‘ Chastity, Sex, and Marriage ’
Sex
Is it good, bad, or neutral, to have sex before marriage? This topic comes up often in discussions in many places. The church has taken the unambiguous position that pre-marital sex is wrong. For us as members, what does the church’s teaching mean about its (and our) attitudes about sex generally? Be the first to like. Like Unlike Read more »
Gay Marriage Humor
This was sent to me by my friend Dan Burk, who is currently a visiting professor at Berkeley: The consecration of Gene Robison as bishop of the New Hampshire Diocese of the Episcopal Church is an affront to Christians everywhere. I am just thankful that the church’s founder, Henry VIII, and his wife Catherine of Aragon, and his wife Anne Boleyn, and his wife Jane Seymour, and his wife Anne of Cleves, and his wife Katherine Howard, and his wife Catherine Parr are no longer here to suffer through this assault on traditional Christian marriage. – Paul Emmons, Westchester... Read more »
The “P” Word, Again
Polygamy is in the news once again. CNN reports that an excommunicated member was banned from discussing his ideas about polygamy with his daughter in a child-custody case, and is now suing for the right to teach her about polygamy. Be the first to like. Like Unlike Read more »
The Military and Temptations to Sin
First Things reports that a Lieutenant Berry has just been vindicated in his attempts to avoid temptations to sin (scroll about 5/6ths down). It seems the good lieutenant–a missileer–wished to avoid being alone for 24-48 hour periods with a female officer in underground missile silos. Be the first to like. Like Unlike Read more »
Mormons, Polygamy and Gay Marriage
I don’t have time to write the quality of post this topic deserves, but the topic can’t wait for me to write the high-quality edition. Hence this abbreviated post. Many Mormons have suggested that the Mormon experience with polygamy makes them reluctant to oppose same-sex marriage. Some have gone so far as to accuse the church of hypocrisy for opposing gay marriage. The concerns expressed by these people, however, expose a fundamental misunderstanding of the relevant issues facing the two debates about marriage. Be the first to like. Like Unlike Read more »
Why Marriage Deserves Constitutional Protection
Maggie Gallagher’s response to conservatives who have expressed qualms about amending the constitution to define marriage is superb. She approaches the issue from two angles. First, on the federalism argument, she points out mundane matters that are part of the constitution, and wonders why these topics merit nationwide uniformity, rather than state-by-state experimentation, but that the fundamental institution of society is beneath the constitution. Second, she makes a passionate argument about the importance of marriage to civilization, and the devastating effects weakened marriage has and will have on our culture. Read the whole essay. By reminding me how high... Read more »
Sex and Censorship at NYU
I just have a millisecond to blog today, but I couldn’t pass up the chance to link this story about the (gasp!) despicable censorship at NYU, that well-known bastion of conservative thought. Apparently they are refusing to let a film student film actual sex for her film project. Be the first to like. Like Unlike Read more »
My (Mormon) Hang-up with (Opposition to) Gay Marriage
Hello all. My thanks for Nate for inviting me (if only for a while) to participate in this blog, and thanks for the introduction Kaimi. Speaking of such, I notice that Times and Seasons started off without any general explanations or identifying comments. Is that a policy, or just because it was assumed that most everyone who might read this blog would know who all the participants are? Either way, I feel foolish jumping into a conversation without doing a little of the usual sacrament-meeting-”let me tell you a little bit about myself”-routine. So anyway…my name’s Russell Arben Fox;... Read more »



