You’re familiar with the meaning of polyamory, right? It is the practice of engaging in multiple romantic relationships (typically sexual), with the consent of all the people involved.
Well, the city of Olympia, Washington’s city council unanimously approved a referral to draft an ordinance to protect polyamorous relationships and other non-traditional families from discrimination. As of this writing, its passage has not yet been confirmed, but by the time of the publication of this blog, it will certainly have passed. The goal was for it to go into effect on Valentine’s Day. This is particularly being pushed by an organization called OPEN (Organization for Polyamory and Ethical Non-Monogamy).
Actual polyamorous marriage is illegal in America, but a polyamorous lifestyle itself is not. That said, supporters of this measure complain that people who live in non-traditional households do face various kinds of discrimination. Non-traditional family structures include "chosen families" (a family grouping made up of people who have simply decided to come together as a family), multi-generational households, and multi-partner families. They say that passing this ordinance will help eliminate various kinds of discrimination for those families.
The kinds of discrimination that they complain about specifically includes housing, medical access, employment, and financial. This ordinance would formally recognize non-traditional families as a protected class and make it illegal to discriminate against anyone because their family doesn’t fit the nuclear family model. You can read this story at https://www.foxnews.com/media/washington-city-pursues-polyamory-protections-proposed-civil-rights-ordinance.
Brett Chamberlain, executive director of OPEN has stated that, “These protections are critical because family and relationship structures have fundamentally changed. Only 18% of US households fit the ‘traditional’ nuclear family model, yet our laws haven't caught up with this reality. About 5% of adults are currently in consensually non-monogamous relationships, and 1 in 5 will be at some point in their lives.”
My, how America has changed.
While many people look at this and see it as a way to stop discrimination, what it is really about is the government elevating a lifestyle choice into a protected class. When that happens, everyone who believes differently is forced to accommodate it. At that point, these kinds of laws become a weapon against dissenters. We have already seen this happen against bakers, photographers, and property owners who objected to providing their services for gay weddings. And as we have already seen regarding gay marriage laws, advocates are never content to simply allow people to “live and let live.” Ultimately, they always insist on active acceptance.
While this is touted as anti-discrimination legislation, it doesn’t stop discrimination at all. What it does is simply shift the discrimination to a different place.
But while discrimination is the political football that is being tossed around, the real issue is not discrimination at all. It is about morality. America was built on the foundation of biblical principles. Those principles shaped not only America’s political structure, but its capitalist economic framework and moral foundation, as well. While laws such as this are presented as promoting fairness through the political process, what they are really attempting is to totally redefine the very fabric of society. Advocates not only want to redefine the norm for the structure of the family, they also want to eliminate capitalism in favor of socialism, and remove the very concept of objective morality (particularly one based on biblical beliefs) and replace it with the relativism of atheistic Naturalism. And that is exactly what is happening.
The question that ultimately floats to the top is, “Why shouldn’t people just be able to live life the way they want without it becoming a political fight?” And the answer to the question is that such a thing is practically impossible. When everything shakes out, there will be some philosophical foundation for society, and any competitor will be eliminated.
As we look at laws, there is a purpose behind all of them. Some are to protect children before they mature enough to know the implications of decisions they are making. Some are to protect the life and property of individuals. Some are to protect other people. And some are to help maintain order in society.
But who makes the decisions about what laws should be implemented, and what is the basis for their decisions? That is what the societal foundation determines. When there is an objective standard for morality, it is possible to have fairness as well as order and stability in society. When relativism rules, on the other hand, there can be no objective standard and you ultimately end up with the law of the jungle – the ones who have power get to determine what is good for everyone.
But there is an even bigger issue at play. Is there actually such a thing as objective morality? If there is not, then those pushing morals and values that go against Christian beliefs have every right to do it if they can gain the power to pull it off. If, however, there is such a thing as objective morality, then there will be an entirely different outcome.
The fact is, an objectively real moral standard does exist because there is an objectively real God who has revealed it. America has a choice to make. Choosing God’s way will lead to freedom and order in society. The other choice will lead to chaos and destruction. Will we follow God’s direction or will we not?
Freddy Davis is the president of MarketFaith Ministries. He is the author of numerous books entitled The Truth Mirage, Rules for Christians Radicals, Liberalism vs. Conservatism, and his latest book Shattering the Truth Mirage and has a background as an international missionary, pastor, radio host, worldview trainer, and entrepreneur. Freddy is a graduate of Florida State University with a BS in Communication, and holds MDiv and DMin degrees from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. He is a popular speaker, particularly on the topic of worldview and its practical implications for the Christian life. He lives in Tallahassee, FL, with his wife Deborah.
You may also contact Freddy at Leadership Speakers Bureau to schedule him for speaking or leadership engagements.
To set up an appointment to speak to a Literary Agent:
Email: Alfredo Baguio
Call: (702) 605-4354
0 comments