同性婚姻或性解放思潮對教會來說本身已經一個不容易面對的挑戰,雪上加霜的是教會中有領袖持不同的意見。支持同志運動的領袖有能力改變一間教會的基本信仰立場,帶領部份信徒去相信及跟隨一些《聖經》譴責的行為。教會想要實踐《聖經》真理,迎戰同志運動,讓領袖認識真理及合一實在是非常重要的事。
2019年1月,日本北海道有三對同性伴侶提出結婚登記申請,但遭相關部門拒絕,理由是同性婚姻在日本並無法律地位。2019年2月,13對同性伴侶於札幌、東京、大阪、名古屋和福岡入稟法院,要求政府就他們未能合法結婚造成的精神痛苦,向每人賠償100萬日圓(約71,000港元)。2021年3月17日,日本札幌地方法院最先就有關案件作出判決,法院駁回六位原告人的索償要求,但裁定政府不承認同性婚姻是違憲的,有關判決被視為日本LGBT+(男女同性戀、雙性戀及跨性別等)人士爭取到的象徵性勝利。有些商界人士認為,不承認同性婚姻會損害日本的競爭優勢,令跨國企業難以吸引或挽留人才,有個別公司則會推出針對同性伴侶的相關福利。[11]
同性婚姻在歐美已經不算是新鮮的事情,但在其他國家或地區,仍然有不少人爭取同性婚姻,有的持份者為到自己的權利爭取同性婚姻,但亦有國家,為了外交的好處而推行同婚。其實,為了自身權益而贊同同婚的舉動並不可怕,畢竟,對當事人來說,這牽涉到他們自身的權益,爭取有利於自身的權益是可以理解的,但最可怕的是同運份子不單要爭取他們的權益,也要打造、推廣「同性戀是正常」這一種意識形態,在北美及西歐,同運人士的工作相當成功,同性婚姻得到不少人支持,甚至在國際外交上,不允許同婚的國家也會被其他國家指責。
同性親密關係必然在生理上是無法生育的,為了想要下一代,男同性戀者只好求助於代孕母,不少人都認為同性戀者,無論是男同性戀者或女同性戀者,都應該有權擁有屬於自己的下一代,甚至決定嬰兒是透過甚麼形式來到世上。在他們眼中,只要是未出生的「人」,他們都是沒有自主權利,在這種思維之下,當「心跳法案」生效,自然會遭到此起彼落的反對。成年人的權益固然應受到重視,但若牽涉到另一個個體,另一條生命,即使他們的形態只是胎兒,他們的權益是否也應該被考慮?畢竟,胎兒是有潛力發展為一個完全的人,而不是一大堆無機合成物。
一位西班牙男學生由於曾穿裙子上學,這位男同學被送往心理學家那裡,也被學校開除。2020年11月4日,西班牙其他學校的男老師及男學生穿上裙子上學,以表達對被開除男同學的支持,於是當日被稱為「穿裙子上學日」。2021年,位於蘇格蘭愛丁堡的Castleview小學鼓勵男女教職員及學生在11月4日穿上裙子,稱要打破性別定型,促進平等。[20]
不少人贊成小朋友「出櫃」,認為要設立準則,讓跨性別學生可以在安全和包容的環境中接受教育。跨性別的成因非常複雜,先不提以上的準則會否誤導了一些小朋友,有可能令他們誤以為自己是跨性別,小朋友總不免會互相仿傚,對於不是跨性別的小朋友,看見有男生入女洗手間,有女生入男洗手間,這會否對他們造成混亂和困擾?包容跨性別學生,為他們提供安全的學習的環境是應該的,但這對於其他人來說又是否安全,甚或有關的準則會否把一種危險的意識形態加諸在小朋友身上?實在是需要思考的問題。
至於容許男跨女跨性別者以女性的身份生活及從事各方面的活動,以幫助他們融入社會,對當事人來說也許是好事,但當大家都以為應該平等對待男跨女人士,讓他們做一般女性都可以做的事、享有一般女性擁有的權益時,這種平等對於女生來說會否造成不公平?老實說,甚少人討論女跨男人士進入洗手間或參加男子組的運動比賽項目的問題,不是說男性絕對不介意,只可以說,男性的體質天生比女性強壯,力量比女性大,他們比較可以保護自己。當大家只追求社會政策上或心理上的性別平等,其實不是真的在談平等,因為生理上的性別差異被排除,不再被考慮。
《平等法案》當中最大爭議的是將「性別認同」納入免遭歧視、受保障範圍。性別認同是指一個人對自己性別的個人感覺,是一種主觀的感受,如果按今天性別政治的說法,一個人的性別是以他/她的主觀性別認同作為依據,而非客觀生理性別,所以會出現有子宮的「男人」(即一個生理性別是女性的人,其性別認同是男性)和有陰莖的「女人」(一個生理性別是男性的人,其性別認同是女性)。很多時,一些人總會混淆了「平等」(equal)以為就是「相同」(identical),就如霍士新聞頻道(Fox News)的主持人Tucker Carlson在節目中公開評論拜登:指對美國總統拜登來說,「平等」(equal)就是「相同」(identical),男和女是沒有分別。Carlson表示這等於說在歷史上他們所聽說過的社會性別分類都是假的,因此,在任何情況下都沒有理由保護女性免受男性的侵害,因為男性和女性的整體觀念都不是真實的。男性和女性沒有分別,這概念才真的是不公平,男性和女性之間生理上存在著差異,若容許出世時為男性的男跨女運動員參加女孩或女性團隊的比賽,這對生理上為女性的運動員是不公平的。雖然在美國有些州份已經訂立一些法案,試圖保護兒童、維護醫護人員及家長的權利,不過,可以想像在拜登政府及所有支持LGBT+人士的反對聲之下,兒童、醫護人員及家長將受到一定的影響。[33]
2016年,隸屬於《歐洲人權公約》的歐洲人權法院裁決一個國家沒有同婚並沒有違反人權,只是短短五年間,今時今日看歐盟的表現,已觀察到時移勢易,傾向支持LGBT+的勢力大大增長,維護LGBT+的權利已經成為「歐盟價值觀」,
甚至容不得其他歐盟成員國因為宗教或價值觀的緣故,對LGBT+有任何「不友善」的想法及行為,稍為與維護LGBT+權益的「歐盟價值觀」不同便成為另類聲音,更有可能受到經濟制裁。[38]
美國也是如此,如果寄養和收養機構把LGBT+伴侶拒於門外,這些機構便有可能不獲資助或失去簽約機會。不過,從上述的個案看來,為了信仰緣故而作出反抗,未必只有死路一條。基督教機構若妥協得太快,不但意味著放棄自己的信仰,也會換來處處受人牽制,據理力爭,反而有機會突破困局,不但可以按照自己的意願踐行信仰,也能幫其他有想要堅持信仰的機構一把。
基於一個人的性傾向、性別或其他原因而對他人作出歧視是不恰當的行為。雖然立法的確能保護某一群體的權利,但卻不能因此奪去另一群體的權利,如宗教及良心自由,更要避免社會出現「逆向歧視」的情況。有人想要表達不同的意見時,不應該因為政治不正確而被迫收回意見,又或者因為有關言論而失去工作或被起訴。一個社會應該義不容辭,努力教導大家彼此尊重、接納彼此的不同,教人打從心底尊重對方,這總比立法懲罰異見人士來得好。
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[9] Sarah Marsh, “Cuba publishes draft family code that opens door to gay marriage.” Reuters, last modified September 16, 2021, https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/cuba-publishes-draft-family-code-that-opens-door-gay-marriage-2021-09-15/; “Cuba publishes draft family code that opens door to gay marriage,” Christian News, last modified September 16, 2021, https://premierchristian.news/us/news/article/cuba-publishes-draft-family-code-that-opens-door-to-gay-marriage; “Draft of Cuba’s new family code opens door for same-sex marriage,” Los Angeles Times, last modified September 16, 2021, https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2021-09-16/cuba-new-family-code-opens-door-same-sex-marriage; “Cuba: Family Code bill published in Official Gazette,” cuba news, last modified January 14, 2022, https://oncubanews.com/en/cuba/cuba-family-code-bill-published-in-official-gazette/.
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[30] Kimberlee Kruesi and Jonathan Mattise, “Tennessee bill mandating bathroom signs called 'humiliating' for transgender people,” Tennessean, last modified May 19, 2021, https://www.tennessean.com/story/news/politics/2021/05/19/tennessee-law-requires-signs-transgender-bathroom-use-allowed/5161761001/; Allyson Waller, “Tennessee Bans Hormone Treatments for Transgender Children,” The New York Times, May 20, 2021, https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/20/us/tennessee-transgender-hormone-treatment.html.
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