What God Has Joined Together: The Christian Case for Gay Marriage

by David G. Myers PhD, Letha Dawson Scanzoni

Overview

Gay marriage has become the most important domestic social issue facing twenty-first-century Americans — particularly Americans of faith. Most Christians are pro-marriage and hold traditional family values, but should they endorse extending marriage rights to gays and lesbians? If Jesus enjoined us to love our neighbors as ourselves, and the homosexual is our neighbor, does that mean we should accept and bless gay marriages? These and other, related questions are tearing many faith-based communities apart.

Across the country, states have voted, courts have debated, and churches have divided over the legitimacy of same-sex marriage. Amid the uproar one perspective is decidedly missing: that of thoughtful, pro-marriage Christians who, informed by their faith, are struggling to make sense of this issue. What God Has Joined Together? is an effort to bridge the divide between marriage-supporting and gay-supporting people of faith by showing why both sides have important things to say and showing how both sides can coexist. Drawing on scientific research as well as on the Bible, the authors explain that marriage is emotionally, physically, financially, and spiritually beneficial for everyone, not just heterosexuals.

They debunk myths about sexual orientation, assess claims of sexual reorientation, and explore what the Bible does and does not say about same-sex relationships. The book ends with a persuasive case for gay marriage and outlines how this can be a win-win solution for all.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780060834548
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	05/09/2006
Series:	Insight Series
Edition description:	Insights, Interviews and More
Pages:	208
Sales rank:	545,059
Product dimensions:	5.31(w) x 8.00(h) x 0.47(d)

About the Author

David G. Myers, the John Dirk Werkman Professor of Psychology at Michigan's Hope College, is the author of fifteen books, and articles in dozens of periodicals, from Science and Scientific American to The Christian Century and Christianity Today. He serves on the National Marriage Project advisory board. Myers has been married for forty-two years and is the father of three adult children.

Letha Dawson Scanzoni has authored or co-authored eight previous books, including Men, Women, and Change: A Sociology of Marriage and Family, and her classic Is the Homosexual My Neighbor? She is editor and publisher of the Evangelical & Ecumenical Women's Caucus publication Christian Feminism Today. Her many articles have appeared in numerous magazines, from Christianity Today and The Christian Century to the SIECUS Report and Utne Reader. Scanzoni is the mother of two and grandmother of five. She lives in southeastern Virginia.

Table of Contents

	Acknowledgments	vii
	A Personal Letter to Our Readers	xi
1	The Great Divide	1
2	The Longing for Belonging	11
3	The State of Our Unions	23
4	A Newer World	37
5	Understanding Sexual Orientation	52
6	Changing Sexual Orientation	69
7	What the Bible Does and Doesn't Say	84
8	What God Has Joined Together?	105
9	Gay Marriage	114
	Epilogue	131
Appendix A	Why Marriage Matters	137
Appendix B	Attitudes are Changing	140
Appendix C	Discussion Questions	150
	Notes	155
	Index	175

What People are Saying About This

David Popenoe

“A well-reasoned, important and timely contribution to the national debate.”

Editorial Reviews

A well-reasoned, important and timely contribution to the national debate.” — David Popenoe, Co-Director, National Marriage Project, Rutgers University.

From the Publisher

A well-reasoned, important and timely contribution to the national debate.

David Popenoe

Coauthors Myers (who serves on the board of the National Marriage Project) and Scanzoni (of the Evangelical and Ecumenical Women's Caucus) "take marriage... [and] our Christian faith seriously." Bringing together those two commitments to build a Christian case for gay marriage, they begin by arguing that marriage is good for society: marriage correlates to longevity; boys raised by married parents are less likely to commit crimes; married moms are less prone to depression than single moms and so forth. Why, the authors ask, should these good things be reserved for heterosexuals? They then consider what Scripture has to say about sexual orientation, rehearsing the by now familiar arguments that Jesus has nothing to say about homosexuality, and though the Bible does talk occasionally about homosexual sex, it does not deal with "loving committed homosexual relationships." Myers and Scanzoni's tone is calm, respectful and balanced. For example, though they present some of the latest scientific evidence about the causes of sexual orientation (including a chart of "mental rotation scores by sexual orientation"!), they also freely admit that scientific studies on this issue are still in the early stages, and that even conclusive scientific information "cannot... resolve values questions." With its traditional defense of marriage and its progressive embrace of same-sex relationships, this book cannot be pigeonholed, and that in itself is refreshing. (June) Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.

Publishers Weekly

There is no contemporary issue more fraught with challenge for Christians than same-sex marriage. Across denominational lines and throughout the nation, the debate rages between those who see themselves as defending the institution of marriage from mortal degradation and those who see themselves as defending civil rights and "true" Gospel values. Myers and Scanzoni, active Christians and experts in the field of marriage and sexuality, make a convincing argument in support of gay marriage-for conservative as well as liberal reasons. This concise and compelling compilation of sociological, biological, and scriptural theses will help everyone marshal the current arguments and develop an informed opinion. Starting from the premise that good marriages advance marriage as an institution, which in turn creates a more stable society, the authors dispassionately review all the data and issues, concluding that "family values" and a biblically rooted faith can happily coexist with support of same-sex marriages. This book will prove invaluable for everyone looking for a readable, concise, and authoritative summary of the gay marriage debate.-Sheila Peiffer, Acad. of the Holy Names, Albany, NY Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.

Library Journal