‘The Philippines is ready for same-sex marriage’

DEAR EPPY,

I am Rev. Crescencio G. Agbayani Jr., the founding pastor of the LGBTS Christian Church Inc. We are located at 4 Auditing St., Proj. 8, Quezon City. 

Thank you for the article you wrote, which was published on March 4, 2014.  Specifically, I would like to thank you for this particular paragraph you wrote, “Same-sex marriage is not only about what is right or wrong.  Same-sex marriage is only part of the process homosexuals have to go through to get an equal share of what life can give.  They are asking to have the same sunlight shining on their faces as the heterosexuals have and the same shade to go under when the sun is too strong.”

I would like to say that I like what you implied.  As lesbians, gays, bisexuals, transgenders, and members of the intersex community, our issue is about enjoying the same things spouses of heterosexual individuals enjoy.  We are all human beings.

As the founder of the LGBTS Christian Church, I would like to let others know that we exist.  We are an ecumenical religious society that ministers to the lesbians, gays, bisexuals, and transgender intersex community in the Philippines and in Asia.  We have churches in Hong Kong, Singapore, and soon in Taiwan.  We would like to let others know that the Philippines is ready for same-sex marriage and we call on legislators to amend the Family Code to give way for equal protection of the law for same-sex couples.

REV. AGBAYANI

DEAR REV. AGBAYANI,

True, I do understand and agree that heterosexual individuals, homosexual individuals, bisexual individuals, and transgender individuals are all human beings created by God.  The experience that one enjoys should also be experienced by another.  No one has the right to deprive others of what he or she can experience.  The same way that no one has the right to make another experience something that another wants to avoid.

In the website entitled Animism International, it points out that, “The only purpose of life, human or otherwise, is to enjoy, appreciate, and sustain the magnificence of the world and to give thanks, continuously, for these fleeting moments of staggering beauty.”  Thus, it is abusive to deprive anyone and anything of experience that is naturally present and existing in our lives.

It is amazing that there are different people fighting for the rights of different creatures, beings, or things that exist in this world.  Examples: There are animal rights advocates fighting for the rights of animals; we have people like US Secretary of State John Kerry fighting for the oceans; before, there were people fighting against child abuse (they are still there and are still fighting against child abuse); there are others now fighting against geriatric abuse; there were people fighting for the rights of the African-Americans in the past; and again, in the past, there were also those fighting for the rights of women.  Now, it is just as amazing that you are fighting for your rights as people with a sexuality that differs from heterosexuals.

As creatures of God, everyone is supposed to enjoy the experiences that others enjoy, which enhance the quality of their lives.  Unfortunately, the laws of countries in our planet were not written by God but by humans.  There are leaders of countries that are scared of things they do not know. 

According to Alexis Dinno and Chelsea Whitney, authors of Same Sex Marriage and the Perceived Assault on Opposite Sex Marriage, the concern of people is that allowing same-sex marriage will lead to a decrease in opposite-sex marriage.  I wonder about this concern because as much as I try, I cannot fathom the idea that a heterosexual man would actually decide to get into a same-sex marriage situation simply because he consciously thought of this.  Dinno and Whitney concluded in their article that there are no deleterious effects in opposite-sex marriages by legalizing same-sex marriages. 

I find this quite ridiculous.  Therefore, I find the concerns of those people as an immature and irrational attempt at trying to control homosexuals and bisexuals.  If homosexuals and bisexuals are not supposed to be granted same-sex marriage, at least give them a respectful and mature reason why they should not be granted this privilege. 

Thus, this argument is not about whether there should be same-sex marriage or not.  Rather, this argument is about being respectful to people by giving them well-thought-of and mature reasons for each decision.  Therefore, if leaders were to decide on stopping people from doing something, at least give them a mature and educated reason for every decision.

So, Rev. Agbayani, good luck on your mission.  But as I’ve said, there are so many scared people in this world.  These scared individuals can also be found in leaders and lawmakers who are supposed to be educated, rational, moralistic, fair, and mature. 

EPPY

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E-mail eppygochangco@gmail.com.