To summarize- Jonathan believes as Christians we should serve others, including those we don’t agree with. I absolutely agree. He also questions whether as Christians we want to live in a society where we can refuse business transactions based on religious beliefs. Here’s where I must respectfully disagree. I believe any business owner should have the right to follow his conscience when deciding whom he will do business with if it violates a deeply held conviction.
Answering the question of whether we want to live in a society where we can refuse to do business with those with whom we disagree, I emphatically say, “It depends.” Do we wish to force those contractors who are morally opposed to abortion to bid on a Planned Parenthood abortion clinic? I think there is a discernible difference between refusing to do business with those we don’t like and refusing to engage in business that goes against our core beliefs.
I also believe we are to follow Christ’s example in standing up for what is right. Examples of this are the times he exposed the hypocrisy of the religious leaders of the day and his throwing the “moneychangers” out of the temple. When we stand up for righteousness in a loving way, we show the world our principles are something we really believe in. Turning down business (especially in today’s economy) is something most people would view as odd if not downright crazy and could illustrate there are things more important than profit- like principles.
Some may refer to the story of Jesus and the adulterous woman to show how he was unwilling to condemn her sinful behavior. While I agree, Jesus defended the woman the most important part of the story is at the end. John 8:11 (NIV)- “Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin.” (Italics mine) Jesus made sure to tell the woman she needed to change the direction of her sinful life. I believe making a cake for a Gay Wedding implicitly implies acceptance of the wedding and by extension the behavior.
In closing, I’d like to share a couple of thoughts:
First- I tried to stay away from the political arguments since I am uncomfortable with the way Arizona approached this issue. My belief is that government should stay out of the way unless compelled to act and Arizona wasn’t facing any imminent danger of religious persecution.
Second- I do believe there are certain factions in our society whose objective is to force their belief system down the throats of any and all who may not agree with them- and they’re not Christians. I think it’s more important for these factions to be “oppressed” than it is for them to celebrate a wedding. I know this- if I had someone tell me they didn’t want to bake a cake for my son or daughter’s baptism (because they felt Christianity was silly, oppressive to women, neanderthal or… well pick one) I would simply find a baker who would.
Now that’s a radical idea.
-DJ Haugh
2 comments:
Very interesting discussion. I think we all agree that others, including homosexuals, are to be treated with dignity, respect and yes, love. At the same time, we recognize that certain behaviors are sin. The question is when do our actions toward a person cross the line of giving approval to their behavior?
Honestly, I'm not sure.
Would you refuse to make a wedding cake for a Christian who was marrying a Muslim or an atheist?
What about a business owner's right to refuse service to someone based on a deeply held conviction? I would find that argument compelling had it not so often been abused. And many of the abuses were cloaked in the guise of religious beliefs. The result is that places of public accommodation are susceptible to equal protection laws.
Mr. Haugh's final point is very honest response. There are those who would force their belief systems down our throats.
I would add that we all have a gag reflex that kicks in when something is forced down our throat. I try very hard not to act reflexively. I want to use reason and I want my response to be guided by my faith. Sometimes it's hard to know exactly what that response should be. And sometimes it's just really hard to suppress our gag reflex.
All good discussion. I came to the house of a client who wanted a kitchen remodel last year. When I came to the door she introduced me to her partner, another female. My first and hopefully internal reaction was to pull away and after pondering that, I think it was one personally unfamiliar and to I feel the media is forcing me to accept that lifestyle on their terms. As the process continued, I truly enjoyed them as people and clients. I chose to work for them as Christ would. I didn't feel I was accepting their lifestyle because of the work I did but then baking a cake brings me to a fuzzy line, constructing an abortion clinic goes way past the line. I do want the freedom to choose who I do business with. Others choose not to do business with Christian organizations because they're Christian, Chick-fil-A. God allows free will because that love is genuine but there are those who want to force acceptance in the name of ridding discrimination but we all discriminate and that's OK. I'm sure I've been discriminated against for work for age and countess other reasons and do I go on a media rampage demanding justice? No, I move on because I don't want to work for someone who was forced to hire me.
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