I know its been awhile since I blogged and Facebook is to thank for that but also thanks to Facebook I have been under fire by a few who think I am wrong for posting about my opinions/beliefs about Chik-Fil-A. For those of you who are not aware of his remarks I am sure you can google it and see all kind of different versions and such.
So the owner (who is 90) was interviewed by a Christian group and traditional marriage was brought up and he said in these words that he supports traditional marriage and is happy to say he is still married to his first wife. Ok with that being said...what is Traditional marriage? His view is the marriage that is seen by the the Christian faith and that usually consists of being married in the church by a ordained person of Faith. That means that the JP does not count and common law marriage (ya know where the couple live together for soo long and then its automatically legal) also does not count. Alo it does mean that Gays getting married would not count either becasue many religions do not recognize it becasue in the bible there are many verses that point out being Gay is worng. Here is one of the first ones that stick out to me
Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God.”
—1 Corinthians 6:9-10 (NKJV)
Ok so most Christians are going with what the bible suggests. I consider myself a Christian and do I believe that....well I guess I do however I question it like many other Christian I am sure....just like we question many other topics i nthe bible and everyday issues. Does that make me a bad person? I would hope not casue just becasue I do not agree 100% with the lifestyle doesnt mean I do not agree 100%..I am torn in between and at times and it is hard to grasp for me. They say hate the sin not the sinner...that helps alot becasue no matter what my friends or family choose for their sexual preference I am a non-judging, love one another Christian. It is their choice and as long as I do not get hurt or they do not push it on me (and I likewise do not push it my belief on them) ot should not matter.
Now onto the whole "lets Boycott Chick Fil A" becasue they do not support gay marriage...oh this could be awhile for me to ramble on....
First off he said "Traditional Marriage" not Gay Marriage and I showed examples on that. He also mention married to his first wife still. (Man where was all the divorced folks at...if they would have boycotted that chain could have been trouble becasue that number is much higher) In now way was he using hate words or anything that would casue harm to anybody else. It was his conviction from his Christian belief. I mean he is 90 and is a baptist who closes his restaurants on Sunday to obey what he believes in and people are now just figuring out he would only be for Traditional marriage??? That boggles my mind right there! And with his age, I know of a few gay men and lesbians who have come out but do not have the heart to tell their older grandparents knowing it would break their heart becasue many people in the older generation are still strong with their biblical convictions.
I was enlightened by a gay male telling me he does not believe in Gay marriage either..just a Civil union between two same sex humans that is recognized by the Government. Marriage is a biblical term and it is the union between a male and female recognzied by the biblical standards and him being raised Catholic knows that being Gay was a sin in the bible so therefore he will stick with the civil union. made alot more sense to me :)
So to the boycott....everyone who supports gay marriage gets in an uproar over one guys opinion....his opinion...not the whole restaurant chain/employees opinion. We already aid this should have been no schock and he was not doing any harm. But the people didnt care..they wanted to crucify him and make his business go under...politicians wanted to ban the chain from their community and stop more from comming. Now everybody is entitled to their opinions and can stand up for what they believe in. I get that...however I still do not understand how this was going to prove a thing?
For one, the owners are around 90 and I am sure they have enough money to make it through. So now lets boycott the business and who is it going to hurt if the business would go low enough to shut down the restaurant? The innocent employees, who more than likely do not care or do not believe the same as the owner...they are trying to earn a paycheck in an economy that is not that hot right now! There is even a gay mangaer at one of the CFA on the East coast who migh be saving up money to pay for a civil union for him and his partner for all we know. So we will punish them...that will show them..Right? Wrong! Sometimes I just do not understand how people think?
Now on to me and why I went to Chik Fil A on August 1st. Well the main reason is to teach my kids that we are to respect everybodys beliefs even if it does not match ours. My kids are very familiar with gays and most of all the issues that come with it to the church teachings and the way supporters think and knowing how the gay community feel. I am open with that to them..I will not shield them completly like some do but on the flip side I do not understand or like the ideal of making out in front of the restaurants...my kids will be shielded from that and even if it was male/female the still would be. That is not an adult/mature way to handle this. I also am letting my kids see how unfair it is to have one-sided beliefs. Gay supporters are right and non gay supporters are wrong. It does not work that way....in my family at least it doesnt. Dont get me wrong I have talked to gays who are fine with CFA and what is going on and they will still eat there (in some of their words the chicken is that darn good) That is how it should be....drop it and move on...and that is how I feel now....
I just do want to point out before I sign off that if you compare all the fast food chains I think CFA does the most for the indivudal community. Lokk at the fundraisers they have, the family game nights and so much more. 9/10 times at a community/school or some other even you always see that cow there...I hardly ever see any of hte other mascots at al lthe events. To me that is a business that cares....and they have been known to gove to charities that support gays and organizations that do to.
Blessings
Debbie
