Marriage & Family

Rev. Rich Takes a Stand Against Small Children

By Justin Katz | September 1, 2012 |

Back when the Episcopal/Anglican Church was finding itself fraught with international internal turmoil over the appointment of an openly and actively homosexual bishop in New Hampshire, Catholic writer and blogger Mark Shea predicted, as an aphorism, that the organization would gradually turn toward the promotion of homosexuality. I always considered that a plausible, but not…

Robert Oscar Lopez: “Growing Up With Two Moms: The Untold Children’s View”

By Marc Comtois | August 12, 2012 |

Robert Oscar Lopez writes of the internal confusion he dealt with being raised by his lesbian mother and her partner. Quite simply, growing up with gay parents was very difficult, and not because of prejudice from neighbors….When your home life is so drastically different from everyone around you, in a fundamental way striking at basic…

Gay Man Makes the Underlying Argument for Traditional Marriage

By Justin Katz | July 11, 2012 |

To kick off an article with an adults-only title on Slate, Jesse Bering inadvertently establishes the core of the case for marriage’s remaining an opposite-sex institution (via Instapundit): One of the best things about being a gay man is that one doesn’t have to worry about accidentally impregnating his partner, or, for that matter, getting…

Marriage and the Rule of Law

By Justin Katz | May 14, 2012 |

Here’s the thing with Governor Linc Chafee’s executive order: It simply isn’t possible to support it and plausibly believe that government should represent an even playing field with divided powers, agreed-upon definitions, and consistent rules for changing policy toward one’s own preferences. Look, I was arguing against same-sex marriage before the topic was hot. And…

False Denials of Comparison Between Roads and Families

By Justin Katz | January 31, 2012 |

In further proof of his lax moral standards,* it took Mangeek too long to read my post responding to one of his recent comments for his own response to attract much attention, so I’ll reprint it here: … what I’m trying to say, Justin, is that I think conservatives (for the most part) are finding…

A Father Is a Father

By Justin Katz | August 6, 2011 |

At its core, the key argument against same-sex marriage is that it prevents our society from creating any distinction between relationships that are plainly different in significant ways. Men and women are different, and when they pair up, their intimate relationship has consequences that no other form of relationship has. Moreover, an ideal doesn’t have…

Different Is Not Equivalent

By Justin Katz | July 6, 2011 |

State Senator Donna Nesselbush (D, Pawtucket) gets to the heart of the civil unions/same-sex marriage matter: Nesselbush said she initially planned to support [civil union legislation] “as a step forward,” but changed her mind because of language — added on the House floor — that exempts religious groups from recognizing a civil union or treating…

Rhode Island Hurts Famlies

By Justin Katz | June 22, 2011 |

In a moving letter (that does not appear to be online), small-business-owner David Durfee of North Scituate tells of his historical need to work harder to “overcome the obstacles created by the General Assembly” but expresses gratitude for having been able to be nearby for his father during his final days. He goes on: It…

The Media Style Book on “Rights”

By Justin Katz | June 14, 2011 |

The Providence Journal reprint of this article has the headline “Gay rights: The backlash” and the following lead: Some who oppose gay rights say their views are targets of discrimination. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen such an excellent example of the way in which media bias begins even at the level of the style…

Re:Who Is Michael Chippendale?

By Justin Katz | June 3, 2011 |

Representative Chippendale responded to my thoughts on his comments related to civil unions: Hi guys, it’s the horse’s mouth here… I used scripture for 2 reasons. First, I’m a Christian and we use the word of the Lord to help guide us when making decisions. There are guiding principles that are far worse – I…