Hypocrisy in the name of God and Same-gender marriages
The US supreme court's decision to legalize same-gender marriages has sent shock waves in the religious world. It seems, so say the pious people, that the throne on which He sits is shaking. Some people are predicting the coming of the doomsday and some people are suggesting that the punishment meted out to Sodom and Gomorrah would inflict upon Americans and their allies soon. Some people are suggesting that pious religious people should leave the country, some are even suggesting to revolt. They assert that Shaitan, (devil) has completely overtaken the country and God is ultimately subdued.
Among Muslims, the issue is even more serious. Clerics are fuming and the average person is re-questioning his decision to live in a country where marriage is no longer defined as a union between a man and a woman. Muslims living in different parts of the world are shaming Muslim Americans for being a witness to this intervention in marriage rules.
But is it about same-sex marriage or is there a bigger issue involved in this?
How come these people did not see the coming of doomsday when the Netherlands first legalized same-gender marriage in 2000? How come they did not make noises when 20 other countries followed the course? These countries are: The Netherlands (2000), Belgium (2003), Canada (2005), Spain (2005), South Africa (2006), Norway (2009), Sweden (2009, Argentina (2010). Iceland (2010), Portugal (2010), Denmark (2012), Brazil (2013), England and Wales (2013), France (2013), New Zealand (2013), Uruguay (2013). Luxembourg (2014), Scotland (2014), Finland: (signed 2015, effective 2017) and Ireland: (2015)
None of these countries faced any known divine wrath in the last 15 year and none of the people raised the level of noises when these countries were legislating the bill and none of them pointed fingers at communities for allowing it to happen.
So why now? And is the gay marriage the issue.
Reductionists would make us believe that America is the greatest immoral force ever existed in history and the same gender marriage is the peak of that immorality. They see America as an embodiment of oppression, arrogance, filthy capitalism, unbridled racism and promoter of satanism in the name of freedom. They argue that sexual deviation is the worst kind of sins in the eyes of the divine, hence America is doomed and with it the rest of the world is also doomed.
Realistically speaking, the issue is not about same-gender marriage, even though it appears to be so. The real issue is much bigger than the sexual preferences of individuals. It is about God and His domain and his revelation. Does it really matter that we believe in divine guidance in a true sense? Does it really matter that He is followed in all aspects of life? Do people have a right to deviate from His path and guidance? Or they have no choice? In other words, the issue is about the concept of God that we as people have. It is about our relations with him and it is about our rights as human beings and choices as well.
Human beings, throughout, human history have demonstrated three major patterns in their relations with God.
1. God is all-powerful and the creator of everything. He has given guidance to human beings in every aspect of life and If people do not follow the guidance, they will be punished in this life and the life hereafter.
2. God is all-powerful and creator of the universe, but he does not want to interfere in matters pertaining to social life and it is up to individuals to decide and determine what is best for them.
3. It does not matter who created the universe. We inherited it and it is our responsibility to decide its future on the basis of the decision of the majority and the most powerful.
Despite the existing differences among these three approaches, those who accept God claim to speak on his behalf have in fact behaved in a manner that is exemplified by the third approach. They have used and abused the divine guidance to serve3 their interests invoking his name. They have created hierarchies of people based on their so-called piety and commitment to the divine words.
There is no consensus among people of God about the definition of God, His attributes, His domain, and powers. Each religious group negates the definition of God by the other. In view of each, the universal God is a God of their communities. There are no divinely recognized universal guidance and even in issues o marriage, they have major differences. The history of all religious communities including Muslims explains that vividly.
When it comes to homosexuality, all religious communities and religious leadership is guilty of committing it secretly. Catholics have done it, Hindu pundits do it, Buddhist monks do it. Jews do. In Muslim countries, especially in Muslim religious seminaries, homosexuality is a norm and not an exception. Yet, few have challenged it and did anything substantial to eradicate. They all try to cover it up and brush it aside as a nonevent. In all Muslim countries and communities, fornication and adultery are not uncommon, an act that is considered a major sin, yet no one really does anything to challenge it. Call girls circles do exist and brothels, hidden and open are not invisible in several places. Thousands of Muslim girls are inducted in the prostitution business every year and yet no one talks about it.
Oppression of innocent people, denial of rights to labor and persecution of the weak and the disadvantageous are common, yet few raise the issue. child marriages, children and spousal abuses are no exception and widely prevalent in our world extensively. Murder and terror are also present and destruction is caused in the name of God regularly. There is not a single vice that has not been committed in the name of God by those who claim to be Muslims, Christians and Jews and the followers of any other religious traditions.
In almost every aspect of life, despite their claims that they are the recipient of the divine message and the follower of the divine guidance, the vast majority of people have acted in defiance and rebellion. It does not matter whether this defiance is in matters pertaining to the divine norms of marriage or social justice. The religious community, by and large, has acted in a hypocritical manner. While condemning the deviations, it has allowed it to be practiced though secretly.
What right any religious community has to condemn same-gender marriages when it has always indulged in deviations in defiance of God. Look at the Jewish community. It has violated the fundamental rights of Palestinians to live as decent human beings and it claims to be carrying out the will of God. Look at the Christian community, it has been involved in colonization, slavery, violence for centuries in the name of God. Look at Muslims. they indulge in racism, terror, in denial of rights to women, child abuse in the name of God. Look at Hindus. They have institutionalized inequality by dividing human beings in various caste and persecuting them according to their positions. Look at Buddhists. They indulge in violence against the weak.
Show me a single community that has lived the divine guidance in essence. They are hypocrites and they have no right to judge others for what they are doing. Their leadership is hypocritical and has no moral rights to point fingers to anyone. They have not stood for justice, for equality and for honesty and integrity. Rather, they have allowed every deviation to take place to serve their financial and political interests.
In Islamic traditions, God has given permission to humans to deviate from his path, defy him, reject him and ignore him. This choice is inbuilt in the structure of the faith. It is a guaranteed right that God had given to the first deviant, Satan, to pursue and propagate his defiance without facing any consequences in this life. If Shaitan has been guaranteed the freedom to deviate without any consequences in this world, then why the society has to punish those who follow him. God is tolerant of the opposition, but his creation does not want any opposition to existing. God could have destroyed Satan, but he allowed him to live and prosper. In fact, he even promised him a non-interventionist approach in the domain of Shaitan.
Humans in the divine scheme have the free will to choose whatever path they want to choose. The divine explains that their deviations would not cause hurt to them and their society as they would not be able to cause any hurt to God or to those who truly believe in him.
In the divine scheme, people bring disasters to them by their own actions. The same-gender marriages are in fact a statement asserting the right to self defines oneself without the guidance of God, a right that is given by none other than the one who calls himself the divine. If that right is theologically accepted, then why is this noise and hypocrisy?
In fact, the argument of the religious community is totally abused. It is so because it goes against the divine scheme and divine will. If he had willed, he could have made all of us a uniform community. Hypocrisy can never win an argument. It always creates more deviations.
Who had prevented the religious community to develop a sound and rational argument in support of their point of view on marriage? But all religions negate each other. Each call the other false religion. Each describes the other Satanic. How can any sane person believe in their credibility? Each has different rules of marriage. For instance, restrictions in marriages pertaining to who one should marry and not marry make the entire institution status-driven and discriminatory. How could they develop a unified perspective when within their own traditions they have differences.
The religious communities all around have failed to define marriage in a universal sense. Each has restrictions in the name of God and even if a man and a woman want to get married, issues related with a dowry, color, status, religion, ethnicity, language, and social custom prevent one from exercising the right freely. A Shia cannot marry a Sunni and vice versa. Catholics are discouraged to marry Protestants. Jewish orthodox cannot marry reformist. It's a mess out there in religious circles.
So the issue is not the same-gender marriage. It is divine guidance versus unbridled human freedoms. Can humans exercise their free will to reject the divine will in all aspects of a lie? Yes, they have every right to do so. But while doing that they have to be honest to them and the divine words. They cannot twist the words to suit their interests. If those who advocate the religious view point do that they would be no different than the religious communities.
Without any doubt the scriptures define marriage a union between a man and a woman. Why use the same term to define same-gender union and why to say that is endorsed by God. It is hypocrisy to act in such a manner. Does it mean that benefits that are given to a married couple of man and a woman should be denied to others? No, legally and socially, no one can be deprived of their rights as human because they do not follow a particular divine commandment.
Yes, I as a believer in the divine guidance reject this life style. But I have no right to prevent others to indulge in this life style other than expressing my point of view. I have no right to create laws that would diminish their freedom and choices and human rights. My job is to convince people around me that my perspective is dignified and humane. But throughout history, people who have claimed to be religious have always acted in an inhumane and oppressive manner towards others. Each has indulged in discrimination, murders and killings of the other. Each has persecuted the other as a deviant. Each has denied equality to others in every possible way. So the religious communities, in general, have lost any moral grounds to stand firmly and challenge it.
Deviation from the divine law has always been part of human history. God has always been defied. It is not new. What is important is that those who believe in the divine message truly reflect it in their life. Otherwise, it would be a hypocritical stand. And this is what what we have been witnessing in our times. Let God do his job and let us do our job by explaining to each other who we are and what we stand for. Only through this open debate and dialogue, we would be able to find our humanity.
