This week, the New York Times editorial page praised the LDS Church-influenced and endorsed Utah Compact on immigration as a model of sane and compassionate policy making. Wrote the Times: “A clearer expression of good sense and sanity than Utah’s would be hard to find.” (Hooray!)
Also this week, the LDS Church joined with leaders from the Catholic, Protestant, Sikh, Orthodox Jewish, Anglican, and other faiths in a statement entitled “The Protection of Marriage: A Shared Commitment,” a reiteration of belief that a heterosexual union is the “natural basis” of the family and a reaffirmation of a joint commitment to “preserve and protect” such unions.
And a few hours after these two news briefs crossed in my inbox, the thought occurred to me: what if LDS people adopted the same outlook on same-sex marriage as on immigration?
Here is the Church’s recent statement in support of the Utah Compact:
As a worldwide church dealing with many complex issues across the globe, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints promotes broad, foundational principles that have worldwide application. The Church regards the declaration of the Utah Compact as a responsible approach to the urgent challenge of immigration reform. It is consistent with important principles for which we stand:
* We follow Jesus Christ by loving our neighbors. The Savior taught that the meaning of “neighbor” includes all of God’s children, in all places, at all times.
* We recognize an ever-present need to strengthen families. Families are meant to be together. Forced separation of working parents from their children weakens families and damages society.
* We acknowledge that every nation has the right to enforce its laws and secure its borders. All persons subject to a nation’s laws are accountable for their acts in relation to them.
Public officials should create and administer laws that reflect the best of our aspirations as a just and caring society. Such laws will properly balance love for neighbors, family cohesion, and the observance of just and enforceable laws.
Imagine, just imagine, a parallel approach to same-sex marriage:
As a worldwide church dealing with many complex issues across the globe, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints promotes broad, foundational principles that have worldwide application:
* We follow Jesus Christ by loving our neighbors. The Savior taught that the meaning of “neighbor” includes all of God’s children, in all places, at all times.
* We recognize an ever-present need to strengthen families. Families are meant to be together. Preventing loving and devoted same-sex partners from making legal commitments to one another and their children weakens families and damages society.
* We acknowledge that every religion has the right to institute, solemnize, and protect its own definition of marriage. Our theology holds that just as God is a married couple—a Heavenly Father and a Heavenly Mother—marriage is to be the union of a man and a woman, and we will continue to promote and hold our members to this standard.
Public officials should create and administer laws that reflect the best of our aspirations as a just and caring society. Such laws will properly balance love for neighbors, family cohesion, and the observance of just and enforceable laws.
