I woke up to very upsetting news. By a 53% to 47% margin, Maine voters repealed Maine’s new law, passed this year, that allows gays and lesbians to marry. I am so sad and embarrassed by my state. Many will be analyzing these results, pointing to the massive funding that the anti-marriage equality proponents poured into the campaign, discussing the misleading ads, assessing Maine’s demographics. But I want to look at this through the MOGO lens.

I have tried very hard to understand the perspective of those who oppose the right of gays and lesbians to marry, and the only way in which it makes sense to me is through a religious lens. If one believes that God condemns homosexuality then I suppose one would oppose gay marriage.

It’s funny that I should be posting this blog after several recent posts about faith and truth, including one about beliefs inhibiting critical thinking. This is a perfect (albeit, in my mind, tragic) example. If one’s belief in the Bible’s condemnation of homosexuality is the only reason for opposing gay marriage, then one is likely to shut down any further consideration of the question and not even wrestle with other ideas and viewpoints.

I recently updated my Facebook profile. Under religion I wrote: “The MOGO Principle.” Although many might argue (and I would agree) that MOGO isn’t a religious precept, for me doing the most good and the least harm to people, animals, the environment, and myself is the guiding principle of my life. It is a practice not unlike many spiritual practices, but instead of being based on faith, it is based on critical and creative thinking and acting with integrity.

When I look at the question of marriage equality through a MOGO lens, it seems clear that what does the most good and least harm is allowing equal rights for those who happen to love and be committed to someone of the same sex as they. By sanctioning these unions legally, gays and lesbians do not have to worry that they will be excluded from hospitals and decision-making when their partner is ill; that upon one of their deaths, the other will be ensured the protections that come from legal marriages; that their children will be one step closer to inclusion rather than potential shame about their parents; that prejudice against gays and lesbians – and the concomitant violence and cruelty that often accompanies that prejudice – will be closer to being, if not eradicated, less tolerated. I could go on and on. This would all have created more good. Sadly, repealing the marriage equality law perpetuates harm that has been endured by gays and lesbians and their families for generations.

One final thought. I hope that those who use the Bible as a source of truth will watch the film For the Bible Tells Me So, which challenges the idea that Christianity should oppose gay rights based on the Bible.

~ Zoe Weil
Author of Most Good, Least Harm and Above All, Be Kind

Image courtesy of Bryan Bruchman via Creative Commons.

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Filed under: citizen activism, critical thinking, discrimination, human rights, MOGO (Most Good), politics Tagged: | citizen activism, discrimination, gay and lesbian rights, gay marriage, human rights, Maine, marriage equality, MOGO choices, politics, prejudice, social justice, voter initiatives