marriages, rabbis, nazis, gays

israeli couples are no longer permitted to marry unless each can prove their matrilineal judaism to the satisfaction of the orthodox -- orthodox, mind you -- rabbis. born and raised in jerusalem? speak hebrew? fast on yom kippur? keep a kosher kitchen? meaningless. anyone unlucky enough to have an american parent gets an especially hard time of it, since american jews are notoriously lenient about their judaism. many couples marry abroad in order to avoid the discrimination. probably won’t take long until such marriages aren’t recognized by israel.

so nobody gets hitched in jerusalem if they're not jewish enough. (in nazi germany, you couldn't work if you weren't aryan enough. will israel start restricting employment permits and set the rabbis davening over visa applications?) meanwhile, back in the USSA, only hets need apply for a marriage license -- you fucking queers go get your "civil union" if you're lucky enough to live in a state that tolerates such things.

but marriage, legal marriage, IS a civil union and nothing more. it's certainly not a religious milestone, since it's recognized by institutions such as hospitals and employers and the welfare department. would the welfare department care if reverend sun myung moon shmeared tiger balm across your naked butts and declared it a holy union? the pope himself can't marry anybody (catholic or not) without a civil license to do so (a license that also allows him to marry episcopalians and presbyterians -- or, for that matter, orthodox jews -- if he feels like it). how can it be more clear that marriage itself is nothing more than a civil union, a thing as separate and distinct from religion and sexuality as the courthouse is from the verdict?

you hear it all the time, that marriage is a contract. well contracts are made out of laws designed by men. the government (not in israel, not in this country) really doesn't care who gets married to whom as long as nobody comes asking THEM for anything. like maybe a piece of your deceased partner's social security check.

so why do we play games like marriage vs. a civil union when they're exactly the same? because most people don't have the balls to say, like the israeli hasidim, "you're just not good enough."

born-agains believe gay marriage endangers them -- that their own unions are less strong, somehow, if same-sex couples are entitled to them as well. i bet poor, pure israeli couples never get a good night's sleep any more, with all these unproven jews getting married all over the place. as if it were okay.