What is the purpose of committed gay relationships?

by Jean
(AZ)

Rick Brentlinger Answers -

In the Bible, the primary purpose for marriage (what some gays and lesbians call a committed faithful partnership) is companionship.

God Himself recognized that Adam, a perfect man in a perfect, unfallen world, with God as his intimate companion, was still alone. And so the Bible says:

"And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet (fitting) for him." -Genesis 2:18

1. God created human beings as social creatures with a deep inner need to love and to be loved. Solomon remarks on this human need for companionship in Ecclesiastes when he says:

"two are better than one" and"woe to him that is alone." -Ecclesiastes 4:9-10

2. If a perfect man like Adam, who had never sinned, still needed a companion, we must recognize that same need in ourselves and allow God to meet our need in His own way.

Heterosexuals need a heterosexual companion while homosexuals need a same sex companion.

3. In the Bible, another purpose of marriage (committed partnership) is to avoid fornication. God created our sex drive for far more than just reproduction.

God created sex to be enjoyable and fulfilling and necessary to our mental, emotional, physical and spiritual well-being.

Yet while God created us with great capacity to enjoy sexual partnership, God also created marriage (committed partnership) as His safe outlet for our sex drive.

"Nevertheless, to avoid fornication, let every man have his own wife, and let every woman have her own husband...

I say therefore to the unmarried and widows, It is good for them if they abide even as I.

But if they cannot contain, let them marry: for it is better to marry than to burn." -1 Corinthians 7:2, 8-9

Non-gay Christians often quote verse 2 to "prove" that God is against gay and lesbian committed relationships.

A better understanding is that God addressed the 95% who are heterosexual, knowing that the rest of us would have enough common sense to understand that same sex attracted individuals should also partner with a same sex partner "to avoid fornication."

4. The fourth reason for marriage is procreation. Twice, God encouraged humanity to:

"Be fruitful and multiply and replenish the earth." -Genesis 1:28, 9:1

Certainly God's command to be fruitful and multiply has been obeyed to a great degree at this point in history since there are now almost 7 billion people on earth.

Some heterosexual couples do not have children, just as many gay and lesbian couples do not have children. Whether or not a couple has children, a loving, faithful, supportive marriage partnership offers many tangible benefits to both heterosexual and homosexuals.

But why do gays and lesbians
have to get married?

Much like a heterosexual marriage, a committed gay partnership unites a couple emotionally, physically and spiritually in their own eyes, in the eyes of their family and friends and in the eyes of the community.

A gay partnership is a moral commitment based on a solid foundation of mutual self-sacrificing love, a desire to do more together for God than could be done separately, a desire to invest in each other's lives, serving God in partnership, plus shared beliefs and values, shared goals and a desire to be faithful to one individual for life.

A gay partnership is also a legal commitment (in areas where such a partnership is legal) which conveys legal protections for the committed couple which are unavailable for two people who simply live together.

An interesting Jewish viewpoint

Orthodox Rabbi Aryeh Pamensky views a strong marriage as the foundation of a strong spiritual relationship with God. Says Rabbi Pamensky:

"In teaching the commandment to love God, Maimonides, the 12th century Jewish philosopher and scholar, writes that one's love for God should parallel one's love for a spouse, though the former should be even more intense.

One should be "love sick," thinking of your spouse "whether you are sitting or standing, eating or drinking." The connection to your spouse should be so intense that he/she is with you in every aspect - in your heart, your mind and your soul.

Once you experience this passion through the physical realm of marriage, you have acquired the tools to connect to the spiritual equivalent and create a loving connection with your Creator. Your intimacy with the Divine will be determined by the very depth and intensity of passion you share with your spouse."

"I am my beloved's and
my beloved is mine."

-Song of Solomon 6:3

Discover for yourself, directly from the Bible, Who Is Jesus?

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