"Hurricane Sandy is 'Divine Justice' for New York's Gay Marriage Law"

 
 
The images of Hurricane Sandy's destruction are shocking, to the say the least. Thousands of homes destroyed, 18 million people left in Fema disaster areas, more than 4 million people still remain without power. And amidst all of the destruction and tragedy, one rabbi in New York City has spoken out and claims that the true cause of Hurricane Sandy is divine retribution. God is punishing the people of New York, he says, for legalizing gay marriage. After a right-wing priest mentioned this same idea earlier in the week, Rabbi Noson Leiter of Torah Jews for Decency backed him up. He cited the bible and the story of Noah and the great flood, claiming that God flooded the earth during a time when same-sex marriage was prominent. Although God promised to never flood the world again, he would punish some areas for their behavior. 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/31/hurricane-sandy-new-york-gay-marriage-law-rabbi-noson-leiter_n_2050450.html?utm_hp_ref=gay-marriage

The idea that someone could use such a tragedy to make a political statement is horrifying. The idea that someone could blame a devastating natural disaster on the sexual orientation of a group of people is ludicrous.  

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zB6MPcZ1Nn8
 
Within the past 20 years (or all of my lifetime) we have gradually seen acceptance of gay, lesbian, bi-sexual, and transgender relationships. When you watch TV at night, more and more family sitcoms and prime time programs depict gay and lesbian relationships as normal and even common. It has become something that I rarely even notice- and it could be because of the way that its broadcast. Look at the cast of the emmy nominated series "Modern Family"- Cameron and Mitchell are a hilarious gay couple. The stars of a new "modern" family. And then a new series from NBC, depicts the hilarious struggle of a gay couple adopting a baby. What is that show called? "The New Normal". Everywhere you look on television, in the news, among celebrities, and even among some conservative communities, the acceptance of GLBT lifestyles is becoming more common.

For that reason it shocks me to hear comments like this being made. But perhaps what is noteworthy is that a comment like this is worth taking note of. A comment like this is something that today makes headlines, whereas 25 years ago wouldn't have caused a second thought. So perhaps even though this statement is so heinous and so ignorant, it is really an indicator of the progress that we've made.