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FIRST-PERSON: Up for grabs

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McMINNVILLE, Ore. (BP)–“If the Supreme Court says that you have a right to consensual sex within your home, then you have the right to bigamy, you have the right to polygamy, you have the right to incest, you have the right to adultery. You have the right to anything,” Sen. Rick Santorum told an AP reporter the other day.

The Republican from Pennsylvania was reflecting the worrisome logic fueling a current Supreme Court case concerning the constitutionality of Texas’ sodomy laws that declare homosexual practices illegal. Homosexual-rights groups and the liberals who love them have denounced Santorum for his remarks and called for his resignation as chairman of the Republican Senate Caucus.

When I first became aware of the senator’s comment, I gave him a standing ovation. “Finally,” I thought, “an elected official with the courage to voice a moral conviction.” Santorum had the guts to state what few politicians and even some preachers are afraid to proclaim — homosexual acts are aberrant.

I also experienced a significant case of deja vu. It was not too long ago that I found myself defending and explaining a comment very similar to Santorum’s.

I was involved in a statewide effort to curtail the promotion of homosexuality in Oregon’s public schools. I believe it is wholly inappropriate for the government to introduce 5-year-olds to a practice that revolves around deviant sexual behavior. My participation in this political push caused me to be involved in several debates on the subject.

In one particular forum a colleague happened to equate homosexual practices with incest. After the debate, five irate individuals upset over the comparison surrounded me. One lady screamed, “How dare you compare incest with homosexuality?”

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I responded, “You mean how dare we compare incest with homosexuality, bisexuality, and transgender lifestyles, because your group supports all of the above, right?” The lady responded, “Yes, of course.”

“Let me ask you a question,” I said. “Why are you so upset with the comparison?”

“Because it is wrong,” she asserted.

“Why is it wrong?”

“Because of an adult taking advantage of a child,” she replied.

“The definition of incest has nothing to do with age,” I countered. “Incest by definition is two members of the same family engaging in sex. If two consenting adults of the same family want to engage in sex, why does that bother you?”

She paused before answering. “It is wrong.”

“Why?” I pressed.

She glared at me. “It is just wrong.”

“Oh, I see. You are willing to make a moral judgment on someone’s behavior simply because you deem it to be wrong or distasteful,” I said. “I agree that incest is wrong. It is wrong for the same reason that homosexuality, bisexuality and transgender pursuits are wrong because it violates God’s natural and moral laws.”

At this point the lady tried to change the subject. However, I would not allow her to do so. I asserted, “If we do not have a sexual standard rooted in absolute truth, then we have no standard at all, and everything sexual is fair game, including bestiality.” With that the conversation ended because the lady and her cohorts walked away.

Rick Santorum is absolutely right. The Judeo-Christian principles upon which our country was founded draws a line concerning appropriate sexual relationships. Once the ideal of heterosexual monogamy is cast aside — for whatever reason — then all relationship combinations are up for grabs. I concur completely with Sen. Santorum; all relationships are not created equal.
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Boggs is pastor of Valley Baptist Church, McMinnville, Ore.