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Having Theological Skin in the Game
I have a theory that religious groups become politically mobilized when they feel threaten in some basic way – when they have theological skin in the game. For example, creationism is vitally important to Evangelicals; without it their entire theological system crumbles. Catholicism is not based in literal and unerring scriptures, so while they are supportive of their Evangelical brethren, they tend to distance themselves from that particular fight. My theory seemed to break down, however when I looked at the virulence of the anti-gay movement. Evangelicals, who have been the dominant force in the Christian Right, just didn’t have enough theological skin in the game to justify 35 million dollars a campaign. It didn’t challenge their theology the way that evolution does; it doesn’t really mess with their cultural dominance the way that prayer in public schools and public displays of the Ten Commandments does. And above all, it doesn’t pose a threat to their sacred cow: capitalism. As I have written here: I could see Evangelicals opposing gay marriage based on the vending machine theory– that God blesses or curses a nation based on its adherence to a Bible-based moral code. And yes, it is a threat to patriarchy. But there are other national transgressions and threats to the dominance of white men that would seem much more pressing. Why did they spend millions of dollars, countless volunteer hours, and tons of political capital on this issue? As it turns out, Evangelicals don’t care that much. But there is another member of the Christian Right who has a whole lot of theological skin in the game of heterosexual marriage: the Church of Latter Day Saints, aka the Mormons. And they have been the driving force of the anti-gay movement. They have provided about 75% of the money and most of the volunteers for the defense of marriage campaigns, particularly the Proposition 8 campaign. I had never considered how Mormons might influence the agenda of the Christian Right. After all, they comprise only 2% of America’s population and are often reviled by Evangelicals as a cult. But last night I saw a documentary called 8: The Mormon Proposition. This morning I checked its facts and discovered that there are even internal documents from the Mormon church which shows how much it has invested in this battle, and they have charged their followers with doing all within their power to block gay marriage. Why have we associated the anti-gay movement with the Christian Right and especially Evangelicals? For starters, the Mormon leadership was concerned about generating negative publicity. It was also rightly concerned with preserving it tax-exempt status. So it created coalitions with the Christian Right. The Christian Right was more than happy to become the face of the movement, spending Mormon money and using Mormon volunteers to demonstrate its political power. It makes perfect sense that Mormons would be very concerned with having a say in our society’s norms for marriage. Their theology is deeply dependent upon heterosexual marriage. To make a complex theology terribly simple: they teach that gender, including gender roles in marriage, is an “essential characteristic of individual premortal, mortal, and eternal identity and purpose.” They believe that we came from the spiritual marriage of God and his wives, and that in the afterlife devout Mormons become the God or God’s wife of another world. It is a theology which relies on the male/female reproductive role. If we legitimize alternative family structures, it would require an entire reworking of the theological structure of the church. Perhaps more importantly, Mormons have reason to fear changes in marital norms. Their history is dominated by religious persecution over societal norms of marriage. In fact, they have already been forced to change a core part of their doctrine to accommodate those norms. Yes, we have had the pretext of concern about the welfare of the women involved in plural marriages, but it seems that we could as easily ensure the welfare of women in plural marriages as in heterosexual non-plural marriages. It seems that the Mormon connection to the defense of marriage campaigns supports my skin-in-the game theory. Religious groups respond with political action when they feel in some way threatened. Understanding those fears and finding alternative ways of allaying them may go a long way in ensuring both freedom of and from religion.
Having Theological Skin in the Game | 3 comments (3 topical, 0 hidden)
Having Theological Skin in the Game | 3 comments (3 topical, 0 hidden)
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