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The Miracle of Life

Fri, Nov 13, 2009 at 06:56:04pm   ►by Rebecca Kapler   ►

    As it has been explained to me by my Catholic girlfriend, the goal of marriage is procreation. If a heterosexual couple is barren or past their child-bearing years, the ideal goal of the marriage (according to my Catholic girlfriend) is still procreation because “miracles can happen.” 

    When I brought up this point of miracles yesterday to a group of sexuality masters students, an intriguing question was proposed: Why couldn’t the same be said of non-heterosexual couples, most notably same-sex couples? We all had a good laugh and someone said, “Well, I guess I should start trying!” but then today I started thinking about just how amazing and bizarre such a “miracle” would be.

    First of all, it would force everyone, religious, non-religious, sciencey folks, medical professionals, the average Joe, to question how the world works. Second, it would make the religious Bible-thumpers either cower in defeat or come up with a conspiracy theory to explain it all away. Third, it would be absolutely awesome. The fact that my girlfriend and I cannot combine our DNA to make a child (and that neither of us has a brother in order to have DNA that is at least close) is heart-wrenching to us. Sometimes when I am envisioning our future theoretical children I think, well, obviously the kid’s going to have this physical or personality trait because we both have it, and then I remember that that’s not the case at all (I have made this mistake numerous times, and it’s sad every time).

    Oh well, a girl can dream, can’t she? 

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    Comments

    multiple meanings...

    Thanks, Becca! The idea that comes to me while reading this piece is the plurality of ways in which we attach value to marriage. With so much debate right now about gay marriage in particular, I believe we need to start sorting out the different threads of what marriage means to people and how this then effects law and policy. I believe it's particularly fascinating the ways in which certain appeals to the value or purpose of marriage juxtapose with other reasons. For example does a focus on the potential (even miraculous) for procreation in marriage trump the framing of marriage as a issue of civil rights? Or does it rather underscore it? The idea of a radical Catholic outlook that supports gay marriage based on the miraculous possibility of conception certainly seems an interesting way to go about viewing the world. Rather, I'm guess I'm interested in how concepts of marriage, either for procreation or a signal of loving commitment or an issue of rights, can by placed in dialogue alongside each other rather than one concept attempting to topple over others in its assertion of itself as the absolute value.

    Michael McNamara on Nov 16, 2009 02:17pm