Sara Tejada

John Kubler
English 115
25 September 2014
If God Loves Everyone
Imagine this you wake up early one morning and decide to take a bike ride near a local
beach before the sun rises. Its still dark outside and so cold that you can barely feel your own
fingers. Panting as you peddle up the hill, you almost decide to give up. Youre tired and cold,
and just want to be back home sipping a cup of hot coffee. Maybe this bike ride wasnt such a
good idea. Your stubbornness keeps you going until you finally make it to the top of the hill. As
your hanging over your bike, trying to reclaim your breath, you glance up and notice the sunrise
emerging over the ocean water. At that moment, you feel peace. The pain and suffering of the
bike ride up the hill was worth it. Pure beauty of that sunrise gave you a feeling of serenity. If
you are someone who believes that all this is the work of God, do you really think that you are
the one capable of understanding and interpreting Gods will? In real life core values sometimes
conflict. The basic values of religion, and the freedom America grants every person to express
their religion freely, often conflicts with the freedom people have when it comes to their
sexuality. In America, you are free to follow any religion you want or not to follow a religion at
all, and that is a beautiful gift. At the same time, America is supposed to be a country free of
discrimination. If a religion doesnt necessarily believe that marrying someone of the same sex is
right, they should not try to prevent someone else from following their heart and their own set of
beliefs. That is not what America or freedom of religion is about. Love is love no matter who the
people are. God doesnt teach discrimination, so it should not be used in the name of religion. If
God is a God of unconditional and inclusive love then society needs to use the teaching of love
in religion when it comes to homosexuality and find a balance between the two.
President George W. Bush announced his own religious belief when he stated I believe
that God has planted in every heart the desire to live in freedom. Everyone would prefer to live
in a world that promises freedom, but sometime people take advantage of the freedom they are
granted. This is shown in a popular court case that challenged the freedom of religion and sexual
orientation discrimination, which is widely known as the Elane Photography case. The New
Mexico Human Rights Commission declared Elane Photography guilty of sexual discrimination.
The Christian husband and wife denied a homosexual couple their services to take photographs
of their marriage ceremony. The business owners claimed that this was due to their faith, and if
they agreed to photograph a homosexual couple then they would be violating their religion. The
Court of Appeals decided that since Elane Photography is considered a public accommodation,
they cannot deny services because of sexual orientation or gender identity, even if it would
interfere with their religious beliefs.
Freedom of religion gives everyone the freedom to practice whatever religion they want.
The opposite of freedom of religion is when one religion attempts to force it beliefs on all others.
Therefore, taking photographs of a homosexual wedding is not the same as denying anyone their
right to freely practice their religion. Many people believe that in order to follow their religion
faithfully, they cannot support an act of homosexual marriage in anyway. However, this is not
the case when it involves the public. The Elane Photography case concluded that a commercial
photography business that offers its services to the public... is subject to the antidiscrimination
provisions of the NMHRA and must serve same-sex couples on the same basis that it serves
opposite-sex couples... [Elane Photography] violated the NMHRA in the same way as if it had
refused to photograph a wedding between people of different races(Opinion of the court 3). The
unjust or prejudicial treatment of people regarding different types of sexual orientation is still
discrimination, even when it involves religion. There is no way to make this action righteous in
the name of God.
The Arizona Senate Bill 1062 Controversy consisted of a bill that would have allowed
business owners to refuse service to homosexuals for religious reasons. Governor Jan Brewer
arrived at a decision that the Anti-Gay services bill needed to be vetoed, because Religious
liberty is a core American and Arizona value, so is non-discrimination(Arizona Governor
Vetoes 'Religious Freedom' Bill video 1:03). By saying this, Brewer was pointing out the fact
that same-sex couples do not only deserve to be treated the same as opposite-sex couples, but
they also have a right to receive the same service as anyone else in the world. Any devoted
Christian, like myself, can still come to an understanding that treating someone badly when it
comes to their sexuality is morally wrong and unethical. Religion does not give people the power
to discriminate a minority group, because even God himself doesnt teach judgemental bigotry.
Discrimination, in any form, cannot be justified by declaring religious freedom.
In her award winning novel, Persepolis, Marjane Satrapi clearly shows how the Islamic
Republic justifies its cruel actions in the name of religion. The graphic novel displays the
hardships faced by a young girl who discovers her true self, along with a new perspective on life
that was often disputed against during the Islamic revolution. The government of Iran controlled
their people by instilling fear into their lives, using it to scare them into dressing a particular
way, obeying unjust religious traditions, and taking away the freedom to interact with anyone of
the opposite sex outside of their own family. It's very easy to take certain freedoms for granted,
especially the freedom of religion. Satrapi clearly shows this when she comments that [People
of Iran] didn't really like to wear the veil, especially since [they] didn't understand why [they]
had to (Satrapi 3). Forcing females to dress as Muslim fundamentalists by covering their body
from head-to-toe and wearing a veil is unlawful. The regime of Iran saw this act as reasonable
because they believed it was part of their religion. Marjane believes in God and has strong faith,
but she does not agree with every custom that surrounds religion.
When religion is forced upon an individual, then it becomes everything religion isnt. By
saying this, I am trying to prove that when someone who claims to be religious and tries to force
their own beliefs upon a homosexual couple by asserting that their sexual orientation is wrong in
the eyes of God, is in reality acting as if they are the one who is capable of understanding and
interpreting God's will. This action doesnt obey any religious teaching that is in the Bible.
Judging others is not acceptable in the eyes of God, as it states in the Bible, do not judge, or you
too will be judged(ERV Bible, Matthew 7:1). Discriminating against someone because of their
sexual orientation is not only completely wrong, but even the teachings of religious values look
down upon discrimination and judging others. Just like in the novel, Persepolis, a government
who forces religion upon others does not have the intention to protect their people. Having faith
in God does not depend on following certain trends that others try to justify in the name of
religion. Freedom of religion is a wonderful thing, but so is a life that is free of discrimination.
Persepolis displays the danger of letting the thoughts and beliefs of a single government
decide the daily lives of the public people. Many people who lived in Iran during the Islamic
Revolution were not very happy with their living situation because all of their freedoms, from
playing cards and throwing parties to wearing make-up and dressing up for a date, were stripped
away from them in the blink of an eye. This kind of life is not satisfying to many people, yet the
people of Iran were forced to live this way because of the fundamentalist religious regime.
Religion can be interpreted in many ways, and even though the little girl in the novel, Marji,
wasnt religious in the way that Iran tried to make her, she took comfort and support in her
personal faith. God was there for Marji when she needed him, and she once stated after a
difficult day that The only place [she] felt safe was in the arms of [her] friend (53). Freedom is
necessary to feel this type of solace. Religious freedom gives people a genuine feeling of hope
and no one should have to fight for the freedom to practice their religion, but that does not mean
that people can use religion as a way to discriminate a minority group.
Homosexual people are often declined their basic rights as human beings and their
freedom has been taken away in so many ways just because of their sexual orientation. The way
to balance these conflicting values is to come to the understanding that people should be entitled
to do whatever they like within the privacy of their own homes. The only liberty on which the
idea of equal rights infringes is the liberty to interfere in other people's private lives. The
freedom to worship does not mean anyone has the right to impose their religious beliefs on
anyone else. Liberty promises that people are free to do as they choose. There should not be any
freedom to discriminate against minorities. People are free to think whatever they want, but are
not free to discriminate.
Madeleine Albright, a widely known American politician and diplomat who strongly
believes that people of faith should be involved in the government, invokes the idea that religion
can be used to resolve several issues that need attention. Religion will always remain in everyday
human lives, and there is no way to separate religion from world politics(Albright 39). This
means that all people in the government and public businesses, including people who are
religious and people who classify themselves as homosexual, need to find a balance between
freedom of religion and freedom from discrimination. Religion will always affect the way people
live, but that does not mean that people can use their religion to justify hate. If a company is
receiving federal funds for a business, they are still required to behave as all the other businesses
do and treat all people, regardless of their sexual orientation, with equal rights. Discrimination
has nothing to do with freedom. Giving someone else equal rights does not violate or take away
rights from anyone else. Religious freedom does not mean anyone has the right to put their rules
into laws that affect everyone else.
Anyone who glorifies God in the name of religion should be aware of the fact that they
are not capable of understanding and interpreting Gods will. Religious freedom and
homosexuality are two values that will always clash, but public businesses need to use the
teaching of love in religion when it comes to homosexuality and find a way to treat people with a
different sexual orientation the same as everyone else, without discrimination.

Works Cited
Albright, Madeleine Korbel., and William Woodward. The Mighty and the Almighty: Reflections
on America, God, and World Affairs. New York: HarperCollins, 2006. 34-42. Print.
"Arizona Governor Vetoes 'Religious Freedom' Bill." YouTube. YouTube. Web. 21 Sept.
2014.
"Bible Gateway Passage: Matthew 7 - Easy-to-Read Version." Bible Gateway. Web. 22 Sept.
2014.
Burwell V. Hobby Lobby Stores, INC. Supreme Court of the United States. 30 July
2014. Web.
Elane Photography V. Vanessa Willock. Supreme Court of the State of New Mexico. 22 Aug.

2013. Web.