New Discussion Group – Week 2 – Gay Marriage
March 28, 2011
I’ve decided to start running a regular discussion group at Sydney University Tuesdays at 3pm. These groups are designed to be a forum where people can come and discuss an everyday issue through the prism of Christianity. Last week we looked at contentment and this week we’re turning our focus to homosexuality.
It seems that whenever an election rolls around Christians are concerned about three issues and (unfortunately) three issues only: abortion, same-sex marriage and scripture in schools. That’s not to say Christians don’t care about other issues these are simply the three that get the most air-play during the: “I don’t even know who to vote for this time around” conversations.
To that end I thought that this week it would be worth examining exactly what a Christian perspective on homosexuality is and why it matters whether or not homosexual couples can be recognised as legally wed under Australian law. We’ll be using the Bible to inform our discussion as we explore why it is that so many Christians lobby against gay-marriage.
Some questions we’ll be thinking about in particular are:
“If gay-marriage is wrong because marriage is designed to honour God and reflect Jesus’ relationship with the Church then why is it okay for any non-Christian couple to marry?”
“Do all humans have a fundamental right to marry whomever they want?”
“Isn’t God a god of love?”
“Don’t we value the separation of Church and State? So why are you forcing your values onto a legal issue?”
“Is it wrong to be gay?”
All are welcome. If you’re free Tuesdays at 3pm come along to the foyer of the education building at Sydney University and join us for a discussion.
