Two men got into a verbal sparring match in front of St. Stanislaus parish school a couple of Sundays ago. One man snatched up pro-Proposition 8 signs and the other ran after him to get the "stolen" signs back. That ended with a fist planted near the pursuing man's eye, requiring 16 stitches to close.
The incident, although written as a simple brief in The Bee, has received widespread exposure elsewhere. The spokesman for ProtectMarriage.Com said the poor, innocent guy handing out the signs was "jumped" by an anti-Prop. 8 man, and how does that show tolerance by the folks claiming to be seeking the same? Other characterizations are that the injured man was "viciously assaulted," "attacked" or "beat up."
What none say, however, is that both men are members of the parish. And the signs weren't stolen -- they were dumped over a fence into the garden of the Sisters of the Cross, a cloistered order with nuns who pray full time for the diocese and the people of Modesto.
What it does show is that emotions are high on both sides of the issue -- whether a constitutional ban should be added to California's constitution restricting marriage to one man and one woman. If passed, the measure would overturn the state's Supreme Court ruling in May that said a previous marriage proposition that passed overwhelmingly (61 percent to 39 percent) by voters in 2000 -- not a constitutional amendment -- was discriminatory.
No one knows how many gay couples have been married in the state since the ban was lifted June 17, nor what impact the new amendment, if passed, would have on those couples.
Michael Schiefelbein, pastor of Modesto's College Avenue Congregational Church, said he has married about 15 same-sex couples since June and will marry a few more before the Nov. 4 ballot.
"I think people thought it important to get married now, not knowing what will happen with Prop. 8," said Schiefelbein, who in 2005 married his partner, Steve Klinkerman, in Toronto. "Of course, we don't know what will happen to those weddings if Prop. 8 is passed."
In the meantime, he said, between five and 10 more people have begun attending his church due to the news coverage of the court-imposed change in the marriage law.
"There's been a great spirit of joy and celebration with some big weddings, like one with 300 people for a couple who had been together for 40 years or so," he said.
If Proposition 8 passes, he said, "I think it will be sad. But I think we're also really kind of committed to making that change again (allowing same-sex marriages), however that happens."
David Nystrom, a former New Testament professor at North Park University in Chicago, was in Modesto on Sunday to present a seminar, "The Bible and Homosexuality." He supports Proposition 8.
"What clearly is the case is that homosexual behavior has been known in the ancient Near East, in Rome, in Greece, in Egypt. It was never considered 'the norm,' " he said. "A push to make this legal in marriage is unprecedented. You'd be hard-pressed to find any parallel. It's somewhat dangerous to start redefining terms (such as marriage)."
However, he's not opposed to extending the civil rights which gays say that marriage gives them.
"I think it's true that one could guarantee complete legal protections without redefining a term that's had a largely single meaning throughout recorded history," Nystrom said. "The Catholic Church says, and I think this is right, that if we're going to vote according to what Scripture says, we have to maintain the position that marriage is a heterosexual contract before God."
Is there any agreement between the two vastly divided sides on the issue? Perhaps on two issues.
After the scuffle at St. Stanislaus, Bishop Stephen Blaire of the Stockton Diocese sent out a statement. Blaire, who firmly supports Proposition 8, said, "There can be no room on either side for intolerance or violence of any kind."
"I agree," said Schiefelbein, who firmly opposes the measure. "People need to respect each other's views and sides."
The other is that disagreements should focus on actions, not people.
"It's unfortunate that the person who practices same-sex behavior is often portrayed as the target of God's wrath," said Nystrom. "Every one of us is faulted. Every one of us struggles. That alone doesn't put us outside of God's love. It's not the person; it's the action. And that is lost in today's dialogue."
Bee staff writer Sue Nowicki can be reached at 578-2012 or snowicki@modbee.com.
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