Is gender complementarity essential to Christian marriage?

Is gender complementarity essential to Christian marriage?

An oft-cited reason claimed by opponents of same-gender marriage is the concept of “gender complementarity — the idea that men and women are different from one another in essential ways, and that Christian love depends on the pairing of just those differences.” Duke University Professor Mary McClintock Fulkerson critiques this idea in her essay from the Covenant Network’s 2006 publication, Frequently Asked Questions about Sexuality, the Bible & the Church: Plain Talk About Tough Issues.

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A Funny Thing Happened

A Funny Thing Happened

Laura Mariko Cheifetz on her own marriage: "I had become so accustomed to keeping this relationship under wraps in certain segments of the church. And I learned that being public meant something not just to us, but to other people. Neither of us missed the irony that our marriage happened in full view of another church and another state, instead of our own..."

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What Do Presbyterians Say About Marriage?

What Do Presbyterians Say About Marriage?

David Jensen: "The biblical authors and Reformed heritage both assume that a marriage covenant is between a man and a woman. The question of same-sex marriage simply does not enter their interpretive world. Since the church must continually re-interpret its heritage in light of new questions in the attempt to be faithful to the Good News of Jesus Christ, Presbyterians are warranted in asking whether or not the distinctive strands of our tradition would allow for or prohibit same-sex unions or marriages. The burden for either side, in my opinion, lies in whether proposals for same-sex unions meet the theological criteria for marriages outlined in our tradition: May such unions, as Westminster stresses, serve the common good? Are they dim reflections of God’s covenant with humanity, as the Old Testament suggests? Do they direct human persons to one another and to the ultimacy of God’s Reign as the New Testament upholds? Do they, as Calvin urged, model restraint from sin and joy in companionship? Do they, however imperfectly, anticipate God’s communion with all creation in Christ, as our liturgy celebrates?"

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