Tweet
In an act of ecclesiastical fiat, James Dobson this week upped the age of heterosexual-only marriage a full 3,000 years. We already know that Bible literalists disagree on how old heterosexual marriage is, with figures ranging anywhere from 2,000 years to 6,000 years. But never before has a Bible literalist changed their former certain date to a new certain date that pre-dates the very creation of Earth 6,000 years ago (by their reckoning).
Dobson has stated both of the following. Both can’t be true.
If the battle to protect marriage takes even five more years, liberal judges and activists will have destroyed this 5,000-year-old institution, which was designed by the Creator, Himself.
Traditional marriage has been the cultural norm on every continent on earth for 8,000 years, even in Greece and Rome.
By flinging such a ridiculous number, Dobson has tipped his hand. Blocking gay and lesbian couples’ access to civil marriage is more important to him than religious integrity. For him, the Bible is a handy weapon, not a sacred text. The question I posed last year is just as pertinent today:
Radical-right Christians who use the Bible as a weapon against marriage equality tend to be Bible literalists and treat the Bible like a history book. But if the Bible provides factual details about marriage, why can’t these folks agree on how old the allegedly heterosexual-only version of the institution is? They can’t all be correct because any Bible literalist will tell you that there is only one way to interpret the Bible – their way. So who is right, who is wrong, and what else might people “certain” about what the Bible says be getting wrong?
3 Comments
5,000 years old?
…he doesn’t look a day over 1,284!
Seriously? Marriage as we know it really didn’t start until after income taxes and tax breaks for married couples. Before then, you got married in a church and you didn’t need anything other than a line in the churches records. Even up to the 1930′s people routinely didn’t get a civil marriage lisence.
But, what do I know? I’m not 5,000 years old.
This guy should read the Bible and check history.
Assuming for his sake that Biblical history is about 5,000 years old, then for over 3,000 years, over 60% of that time, polygamy was not only the norm but but mandated in some cases. Polygamy was even around in the time of Jesus and Paul. It was referred to in the New Testament but curiously never condemned.
In fact, monogamous marriage was a Greek and Roman thing that was adopted by the Judeo-Christian world after the melding of the Roman Empire and Christianity (one of main things that caused the downfall of the empire I might add).
Before anyone accuses me of supporting polygamy, let me say I am not. It is a misogynistic arrangement that considers women to be property. I’m just saying that anyone who says its been “one man / one woman” since the dawn of time is fooling themselves or lying to everyone else. I guess I’m agreeing with Dan Savage (and apparently Dr. Dobson does too to some degree) that the Bible got some things wrong and the polygamy vs. monogamy debate is one of them.
Based on his claims dated 16 May 2012, as of today (19 May 2012), James Dobson insists that marriage has been a cultural norm on every continent on the planet for 8,000 years and 3 days.
What ancient, worldwide event caused this? Nothing.
No one could possibly have such knowledge, and there is no history supporting his superstition.