John and Lisa's Blue Skies Blog – Soaring with God

I agree that we need to be wary of moral relativism – however, I don’t think it makes much sense to lump abortion and same-sex marriage into the same pile with murder and rape.  They are not all the same from the standpoint of the harm that is done to people.

Think of it this way:  Rape is always wrong.  I can’t think of any reason why rape could be justified.  Murder is almost always wrong.  Notice I said ALMOST.  There are situations where, unfortunately, it is necessary to kill one person to keep him/her from killing more people.  Examples:  Hitler or Osama bin Laden.  That doesn’t mean we should rejoice over those necessary murders (as many people did with bin Laden), only that they were sadly necessary.  There are situations where murder is justified.

Now, with abortion and same-sex marriage, we are getting into much grayer territory.  We need to be wary of black or white thinking, either-or thinking.  There are many situations where abortion or same-sex marriage is really the best solution for the people who are involved.  This is what Jesus cares about:  love and compassion.  Jesus wants us to be able to look at the people who are right in front of us, to look at their particular situation, and help them make a difficult decision – but one that is in the best interests of those involved.  So – I do NOT believe that abortion is ALWAYS wrong.  There are situations where, sadly, abortion is the best choice, the choice that allows those who are involved to best practice love and compassion.  This doesn’t mean abortion should be used in all situations, just that there ARE situations where it is appropriate.  I believe this is also true with same-sex marriage.  True love means the ability to commit oneself wholehearted to another person, to live unselfishly.  There are many ways of bringing new life into the world, ways other than a man and a woman birthing a child.  I’m convinced of this because I have several gay/lesbian couples who take my yoga classes.  These couples have been together for many years.  They truly love each other and have seriously committed themselves to each other.  That’s what matters.  Not our judgements of what we have decided is “right” or “wrong.”

Jesus tried to wake people up to these sorts of judgements in his own day when he said there was nothing wrong with healing the sick on the Sabbath.  Human beings had decided it was ALWAYS wrong to heal on the Sabbath, but Jesus taught that there are situations where it is warranted.  Same thing in our own day with subjects such as abortion and same-sex marriage.  We need to give up our own judgements and ask “what would Jesus do” in these situations.  He would do whatever spreads the most love and compassion in any given situation.  He would do whatever best supports a person’s overall physical, mental, emotional and spiritual well-being.