There will be no celebrity adoption for Sir Elton John and his partner, David Furnish in Ukraine. Both Church and state are firm about that.At 62 Elton John is too old to adopt under Ukranian law, and at least as far as the Church is concerned, he is also, evidently, too gay. I read about it this morning online. " Elton John Is A Sinner" the headline screamed. A Church spokesman had this to say about gay marriage and the proposed adoption of a 14 month old HIV positive Ukrainian orphan by the celebrity couple.
"People pretend to have good intentions, create semi-marriages and so-called families, and moreover they dare to adopt children. Unlike people who are blessed by God to create natural families, these are people who succumb to their passions."
The harshness of the remark made my hair stand on end. Who does this guy think he is making judgements like that? It's not like heterosexuals make wonderful parents just by virtue of being heterosexual. I was married for more than 30 years. My husband and I had two children. I am now divorced. I was an OK mother, but I sure made my mistakes. I wouldn't call my marriage a brilliant success, especially considering the way it ended. But according to this priest of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church my marriage was blessed by God and Elton John and his partner are only "succumbing to their passions."
I wish he could meet two gay men who live just a few blocks away from me. They have an adopted daughter from China who is about seven now. She came to them from a Chinese orphanage when she was an infant. She is a happy kid and they are responsible, excellent parents, respected in the community and active in local civic and charitable affairs.
Just a few blocks away from me in another direction lives a traditional family of mother, father, and two boys, ages 8 and 10. They are not happy campers. The neighbors can hear them fighting and screaming at each other all the time. There is lots of stomping in and out and slamming if doors, not to mention yelling and threats. On a couple of occasions the cops have been called by worried neighbors. The older boy is angry and troubled and the younger one just looks lost. Is the wife a battered woman? I suspect so. Is her union blessed by God? I wonder.
There may be good reasons why Elton John and his partner should not adopt this particular child. I have to say I am not a big fan of celebrity adoptions in general. This kid seems to have a living, if sick mother and a brother who is in the orphanage with him. Perhaps there is extended family. He's not really alone after all. When I watch the video below, I'm not even sure how serious Elton John really was. It sort of seems like he was just carried away by the moment. Whatever. Maybe it was a slow news day.
My point is only this. Love comes in many forms and so does family. It seems to me that in the name of human compassion, we ought to honor them all and not be too quick to judge who is doing God's work and who is not.
source: Mail Online
3 comments:
I agree with you 100%. Great examples, and so true.
I'm also wondering though, if this IS going to be a todo, and say they do allow Elton John to adopt, what it would be like for the brother he'd have to adopt as well. It does all seem rather quick and unplanned of a decision. But as for being a dad, I think Elton and his mate would make interesting parents, and their child(ren) would be quite provided for to say the least.
What a great find! Slow day in the news? perhaps. But definitely a topic worth mentioning.
Great article.
I can't help feeling that EJ & husband (can't remember his name) would do better giving proper support to the existing family, so that the mother can look after her own children, or at least, the brothers stay together.
It doesn't surprise me that the state is so anti, though. And I reckon the Church is flexing its muscles, after too long when it was squashed under the USSR.
I agree 100% too. What's that saying? "Sweep your own doorstep first" (or something like that). Churches and church elders don't have a great grasp on reality when it comes to what a *real* family or *good* parents look like. I can't recall a single instance of a child being abused in, or yanked out of, a same-sex household, but it's all too common for "traditional" households.
Maybe those "blessed by God to create natural families" shouldn't be the gold standard for the Church after all.
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