Marriage? (updated / edited)

In our family, it is T who is the great fan and follower of DailyKos. It is linked here, and I check it, but I'm not nearly as consistent with that as is my "sister-heart." She pretty regularly forwards to Master and I whatever she finds interesting, enlightening, or particularly lucid from the conversations that happen there. I don't generally find that there is anything there that I need to bring here, to this Blog, but this one is different. So, here, for your enjoyment is a recent commentary made at the DailyKos on the subject of "Biblical Marriage:"

by kos Wed Dec 10, 2008 at 10:50:03 AM PST
jem6x has an excellent diary on Newsweek's great cover story on the Bible and gay marriage. Go check it out. But this comment by gladkov was particularly excellent. In short, if we are to let the Bible define what "traditional marriage" should look like, then our marriage laws should be amended as such:

A. Marriage in the United States shall consist of a union between one man and one or more women. (Gen 29:17-28; II Sam 3:2-5)
B. Marriage shall not impede a man's right to take concubines in addition to his wife or wives. (II Sam 5:13; I Kings 11:3; II Chron 11:21)
C. A marriage shall be considered valid only if the wife is a virgin. If the wife is not a virgin, she shall be executed. (Deut 22:13-21)
D. Marriage of a believer and a non-believer shall be forbidden. (Gen 24:3; Num 25:1-9; Ezra 9:12; Neh 10:30)
E. Since marriage is for life, neither this Constitution nor the constitution of any State, nor any state or federal law, shall be construed to permit divorce. (Deut 22:19; Mark 10:9)
F. If a married man dies without children, his brother shall marry the widow. If he refuses to marry his brother's widow or deliberately does not give her children, he shall pay a fine of one shoe and be otherwise punished in a manner to be determined by law. (Gen 38:6-10; Deut 25:5-10)
G. In lieu of marriage, if there are no acceptable men in your town, it is required that you get your dad drunk and have sex with him (even if he had previously offered you up as a sex toy to men young and old), tag-teaming with any sisters you may have. Of course, this rule applies only if you are female. (Gen 19:31-36)

Have I mentioned that I think this whole business of defining "marriage" based on religious beliefs and values is pure horse manure? I realize that people may have religious views on this topic, and they are surely welcome to them, but for those of us who may not share the same set of beliefs, why is it so difficult to make "marriage" a civil agreement between the parties for the sake of managing property and other family matters? For those who are interested, here is a link to an excellent piece that Master wrote a couple of years ago on The Myth of Modern Monogamy . He covers the topic in remarkable detail and depth.

In addition... a friend sent me this link privately. It is funny and provocative on the subject of what might be "interpreted" based on Biblical references...



swan