Remain Calm. All Is Well.

***PARENTAL ADVISORY: THE FOLLOWING POST IS RATED "S" 

FOR EXTREME SARCASM AND SNARKINESS***

Unless you live under the social media equivalent of a rock you know that three things are going on today. First, thousands are dead and millions are in jeopardy of starvation in Nepal. This news is rapidly fading in importance because it is far away, most Americans can't find Asia on a map much less Nepal and it isn't very interesting news when compared to Bruce Jenner mutilating himself. The second major news event going on are the ongoing riots in Baltimore as thousands peacefully protest a very suspicious death and a lot of people are using this as cover to strike a blow for freedom by burning down their own neighborhoods and stealing liquor.

The third news item, largely ignored by most of the media in favor of the latest news about the Kardashians, is that the Supreme Court is hearing arguments today in the case of a homosexual couple that flew to a state that allowed "gay marriage" to have a quickie "marriage" on the tarmac before flying back home and finding, to their apparent amazement, that Ohio would not recognize their "marriage" (see this article on NPR regarding their surprise). Of course the very fact that they flew to Maryland, had their ceremony performed on the tarmac, apparently without even getting out of the plane, and flew back to Ohio where they knew homosexual "marriage" was not recognized (which is why they left the state in the first place), sort of destroys any credibility to the notion that they were "heartbroken" and that they, like others, were not setting out to be "activists". Anyway, I fully expect the risible "Supreme Court" to do what it so often does, namely to do the exact opposite of what it is intended to do by creating laws and rights out of thin air. I can't imagine a scenario where anything other than a decree coming from the Court that every state will have to recognize "gay marriages" performed in other states or perhaps even to require all 50 states to recognize and perform "gay marriages" in  their own state.

Not surprisingly this is causing a great deal of garment rending and teeth gnashing among my social media circles. The church in America has for most of our history had a cozy relationship with the state, performing marriages for Caesar and keeping the peasants in line in return for favorable treatment for our institutions and clerics. The look on the face of most of the church is that of a loyal dog right after their master, having a rough day at work, gives them a kick. My message to the church is a quote from the Prophet Kevin Bacon in that most cerebral of films, National Lampoon's Animal House:



Remain calm. The actual Supreme Court has the Lord God Almighty as the sole arbiter and His definition hasn't changed. Likewise preventing a homosexual couple from dressing up and holding a "wedding" ceremony doesn't do much to advance the Kingdom. Neither does a religious professional officiating a wedding between two unbelievers make their marriage God honoring. I have been an advocate for divorcing the church observance of marriage from the civil union process of Caesar and for once I am looking in retrospect like I am ahead of the curve on an issue.

Remain calm. Preach the Gospel. Model the Kingdom in our lives and communities. Caesar can no more redefine what God has ordained than he can declare God is dead. We of all people should know better.