Last week, Mississippi threw in its hat with 20 other states, including Indiana, by passing their own Religious Freedom Act.
The legislature has called the bill the Protecting Freedom of Conscience from Government Discrimination Act.
The Mississippi bill, which is now waiting to be signed into law by the Mississippi governor, outlines sexual morality in three parts: that marriage is between a man and a woman, sexual relations are reserved for such a marriage and one’s gender is determined by their physical and genetic attributes at birth.
Under this act, Mississippi residents who refuse services or employment under the protection of this law cannot be punished by the government due to “discrimination.”
I’ll admit I expected the other two stipulations, but the addition of premarital sex into state law was surprising.
Nonetheless, it’s discriminatory and a political and legal endorsement of a single interpretation of Christianity.
Those are indisputable facts, so I’m not going to discuss them.
What I do want to discuss is America’s obsession with sexual sin. For argument’s sake, let’s assume that homosexuality, transgender identities and premarital sex are sins — though I don’t believe that for a second.
I’ll group those sins in with divorce, gambling, drunkenness, lying and coveting, which are just a few examples of other sins found in the Bible, assuming you interpret the text in the same literal, archaic fashion as the Mississippi legislature.
It’s fairly common for Christians to believe that all sins are treated equally. James 2:10 says, “For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become accountable for all of it.”
And Ephesians 2:8-9 says, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith...not by works, so that no one can boast.”
This means admittance to heaven isn’t based on one’s works, neither good deeds nor sins — it’s based on one’s relationship with God.
God doesn’t judge the quality or quantity of one’s sins, as James 2:10 tells us. His version of justice is not like ours.
The law of God should help a person maintain a healthy and fruitful relationship with him, not assign punishment to it.
This is why God sees all sins as equal. You either cared about living your life in connection with him or you didn’t. The choices you made in life will probably reflect that, but the only thing that matters is your personal relationship with God.
In my opinion, Christianity doesn’t assign value to sins. Modern American Christianity, however, definitely does.
Pew Research Center found 16-24 percent of Americans believe gambling, divorce and alcohol use are morally unacceptable, compared to the 30-50 percent who feel homosexuality, abortion and premarital sex are unacceptable.
Meanwhile, the global averages rank gambling as much more unacceptable than any of the other sexually controversial issues.
America clearly despises these sexual sins disproportionately to other sins of the Bible and in defiance of the widely accepted theology that God views all sins the same way.
Pew gives us evidence that American Christians care less about alcohol use, gambling and divorce, and I’m sure lying and coveting aren’t even remotely of concern, despite the fact that these are all sins — if you interpret the Bible that way.
It’s as if American Christians are afraid of sexual sins and this is why they are more unacceptable to them.
No matter what it is, there’s certainly an unhealthy obsession with them amongst the american people and the legislature alike.
After all, no one in the 21st century insists on passing laws allowing discrimination against alcoholics, gamblers or liars.
In short, if you’re concerned with the sins of the Bible, then be concerned with all of them.
thshowal@indiana.edu
@TherinShowalter
