via Jesus in Love Blog
Jesus supported love, but not marriage, according to a thought-provoking new poster by gay artist Dirk Vanden.
Large white words against a rainbow background state, “FYI: Jesus never married, nor commanded nor advocated nor performed ‘marriage.’” At the bottom is a Biblical quote from Jesus, “Love one another as I have loved you.”
Vanden says that he creates artworks such as “Jesus Never Married” to help gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (GLBT) people who are “seeking equality, legitimacy, legality -- acceptance -- of ourselves and our unions and families.”
The poster is a welcome contribution to the current debate about same-sex marriage. Conservatives often use Christianity to justify denying lesbian and gay couples the right to marry. However, Jesus Christ himself was apparently not a big supporter of marriage. There are no records that he ever got married or performed a marriage.
Christian tradition says that Jesus supported marriage because he did his first miracle at a wedding -- where he turned water into wine. As Vanden notes, “He went to weddings and got drunk, but he never performed one.”
In the Bible Jesus spoke against divorce and adultery, but he said nothing at all about marriage (or about homosexuality). Since he didn’t advocate marriage for heterosexuals, it’s interesting to consider what Jesus would think of today’s movement for same-sex marriage.
Vanden’s “Jesus Never Married” piece is also a bumper-sticker. He displays it proudly on the back of his van.
“In my lifetime I have seen amazing changes,” Vanden says. “More are yet to come! I hope I have helped!”
For more info on Vanden and his art, visit:
http://www.dirkvanden.net/
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