Texas wedding business takes out advert to keep gay couples away

[Deborah]

Texas wedding business takes out advert to keep gay couples away

By David Hudson

http://www.gaystarnews.com/article/texas-wedding-business-gay-couples/#gs.t1uvwls

A wedding business in East Texas has taken out a double-page advert to publicize its stance on same-sex marriage after its owner was approached by a gay couple with inquiries about its services.

'The family is under assault and being destroyed, and this is one more nail in the coffin, and that's why I have been up front about what I believe,' Flournoy told the channel.

The advert itself states: 'Our Christian faith demands that we not participate in same-sex, transgender or any other perversion of marriage.

'Unless one man and one woman is the only structure for family, all of society descends into depravity and ultimate destruction.
---------------------------------------
Conservative Christians are such drama queens.  . . . "all of society descends into depravity and ultimate destruction" . . .

Besides, they cheat on their spouses and get divorced at the same rate as everyone else.  So much for family values, LOL.

In fact, since the Bible prohibits divorce except in the case of infidelity there are a large number of them that are now polygamous and living in perpetual adultery and condemnation from God.  I expect there will be lots of these "Bible Believers" inhabiting the halls of hell.

Do I really believe that?  No.  But that is the standard of judgement they throw at us; so maybe!

My message to them is clean up your own house first.  Until then, nobody is interested in what you so hypocritically offer!!!!

FWIW, this was one of the things that cracked by faith in the Church a few years ago.

[Deborah]

Here we go.

Barna's results verified findings of earlier polls: that conservative Protestant Christians, on average, have the highest divorce rate, while mainline Christians have a much lower rate. They found some new information as well: that atheists and agnostics have the lowest divorce rate of all. 

http://www.religioustolerance.org/chr_dira.htm

Despite the fact that according to them I am damned, I have remained 100% faithful to my wife for 33 years.

So, who has family values and who has just a big gas bag of hot air?

[CaRenaetx]

So don't use their services, they want to not do it... let them.  Who cares?  In the end, at this point, it's a moot point.  Do you WANT people that aren't keen on the idea providing you a service?  I'd rather know you aren't and find someone who is then someone who isn't' forced to provide me service behind a false face.

[Deborah]

I care because if this,

Flournoy told the Christian-oriented Lifesite that he would be confident of victory is anyone bought a lawsuit against him – citing the Texas Religious Freedom Restoration Act as protecting his business.

These Christian Preservation of Bigotry Laws are the issue. 

[Devlyn]

So don't use their services, they want to not do it... let them.  Who cares?  In the end, at this point, it's a moot point.  Do you WANT people that aren't keen on the idea providing you a service?  I'd rather know you aren't and find someone who is then someone who isn't' forced to provide me service behind a false face.

I agree.It's much better to know they don't want to do it than fork over money for a half-assed job. If it's about the wedding cake, they can keep it anyway. Have you ever been in a gay bakery? I have, and the police had to come remove me from the premises when I refused to leave at closing time!   

Hugs, Devlyn

[Tessa James]

I agree with you Deborah.  Until so called religious institutions and their minions pay their fair share of taxes their bigotry on parade is subsidized by the rest of us in the USA.  Give up the garb and falderal and this is simply a cultural power struggle.  Many of us who have been at the mercy of those (as children) who gladly try to demonstrate the "fear of god" or the power of the pulpit are indeed hypocritical bullies. 

I appreciate those who stand up against bullies or those who wrap themselves in religious ideology and any other foolishness masquerading as somehow better than you and closer to their latest version of a god.

We have more important issues to contend with as a nation and global citizens.  Ideology that many will so boldly discriminate, kill and die for is naked and unnecessary aggression.  I have been on the front lines at places like women's clinics as busloads of hateful pro life folks assaulted us.  Not much about love and sharing exhibited there.

Have your cake and eat it too but duking it out with the police over cupcakes???    

[Deborah]

If people back in the 1960s had taken the attitude to not go where others didn't want to serve them then we'd still have separate bathrooms and lunch counters for different races. 

I'm old enough to remember the white waiting room in the front and the black waiting room in the back of my Grandfather's doctors office.

No, the situation isn't exactly the same, but the same worn out evangelical arguments are being used to support it.  "God said so."

Either we are equal human beings with dignity  or we are not.  They say we are not.

[itsApril]

If people back in the 1960s had taken the attitude to not go where others didn't want to serve them then we'd still have separate bathrooms and lunch counters for different races. . . .  Either we are equal human beings with dignity or we are not.  They say we are not.

Exactly.  If a business takes advantage of the protections of law and holds itself out as open to the public, it incurs the obligation to serve the public without discrimination.  If the owner of the business reserves the right to discriminate, the business is not entitled to the protection of law.

Here in California we have a very simple principle, the Unruh Civil Rights Act:

"All persons within the jurisdiction of this state are free and equal, and no matter what their sex, race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, or sexual orientation are entitled to the full and equal accommodations, advantages, facilities, privileges, or services in all business establishments of every kind whatsoever."

That's been the law in California since 1959 (amended in early 2000s to add "sexual orientation").  It works fine!

[Mohini]

We need to alert al-Gayda to have them storm them with calls and e-mails, by the thousands, saying something like, "Hello!  We've heard about your raving wedding services.  We'd like to schedule our wedding with you.  It will be at XXX church or house, and we are [insert name] [insert same-sex name]."  Just tie up the phone lines all day long for a few weeks.

[Lady Sarah]

My sister in law officiates weddings, and proudly announce she will marry anybody from the LGBT community as well as cis-couples. This is in San Angelo, Texas.

No matter how many groups will tell you "NO!", there are plenty more that will say "yes, of course".

[becky.rw]

I agree with you Deborah.  Until so called religious institutions and their minions pay their fair share of taxes

Paying taxes and rights have nothing to do with each other.  A right is a right regardless.

But I'd also like to point out, most churches are in law, and in fact, non profit organizations; their income tax would be near zero, even if they were subjected to it; though their would be some accounting changes that might cost them some extra money on a change.

As to property taxes, it cuts both ways, and wouldn't be particularly large for most churches anyway (what is the market value of a church building anyway? diddly squat.)   A change to paying property taxes would, at most, create an accounting inconvenience, and modest expense.

The real question is the conflict between individual right of association, commerce laws, and rights against discrimination.    Unfortunately, some states have taken a very obnoxious path forward in this regard, a path that will be litigated for some time, though I think in the end will settle in favor of non-discrimination.   Its the same script as from the civil rights era, they didn't approve of mixed couples either, eventually they lost and become more or less used to the idea.   Now my town, in the middle of redneck heaven, has high school couples of all sorts of mixes, and no one really cares.

The trend does frighten me though, the idea that they might find a way to deny me/us access to anti-androgens/hrt for gender issues really gnaws at my confidence in the future.   I don't want to get used to comfortable for a decade and then have the nightmare thrust back on me with little ability to cope...

[Devlyn]

...

Have your cake and eat it too but duking it out with the police over cupcakes???

Sometimes they're worth fighting over. 

Hugs, Devlyn