Same Sex and Sharia

The current discussions in parliament on same-sex marriage rights and in Ontario, Sharia Law, vis à vis the Charter of Rights is charting a new and challenging course for liberal and fair-minded Canadians. In a world where the chasm between secular thought and religious extremism is widening daily, it is time for us to step back and consider again the role of church and state.

One should not deny the value of the institution of marriage in establishing a social status of the family unit. That is when two people make a commitment to their community to share their similar values and traditions. If there are offspring from the union, they are accepted into the community as part of the ‘family’ and treated accordingly. There are social rules of decorum that the ‘family’ is expected to follow, based mainly on religious teachings.

But when it comes to the greater social milieu, those religious teachings may or may not coincide with what the majority of the people believe to be in accordance with ideals we use to govern ourselves and our country. This is when the Charter comes into force, guaranteeing standards of law for all, despite the ‘religious’ or special community values.

When our laws - criminal, common or civil, set out rules for something called a ‘family’ or spouses or common-law partners, as in Income Tax or Family Property, then we must ensure that all citizens are treated alike. When health and insurance entitlements are defined on the same basis, we need these common set of rules for all.

In the case of the marriage license, some churches are saying it is within their right, under the Charter, not to have to perform these same-sex unions or marriages. I totally agree with them. But then I ask, what business is it of any church to be the provider under law to pronounce any couple to be a family? Surely this is a function of the State, not the Church. And surely in the growing secular world, it ought to be the right for any two consenting people to obtain this legal document from the government.

If two same-sex people believe they want to share the rest of their lives (or a shorter period of time as is more and more common with the rest of us) then they should be able to obtain the legal documents that entitle and obligate them to the same rights and freedoms we all enjoy. And these documents should be available at the local registry of births, deaths and marriages. These duly witnessed legal documents do not require the seal of any clergy.

In the case of Sharia Law being applied to some Canadian citizens and not others, wherever the religious law comes into conflict with our common, civil or criminal law and the tenets that flow from them, the law of the country must supersede. We currently accept a form of the Christian rules as law on adultery and divorce although this has been broadened to include other reasons more secular than religious.

There are many social, legal and tax implications that have flowed from this and to now think that we should make exceptions to these laws because some do not hold to them, based on religious ideas, does not meet the test under the Canadian Charter where all citizens are to be treated equally under the law.

It is one thing to sit in a Healing Circle and seek the understanding of the victim and talk about the impact on the closed society, or to have the clergy admonish one for coveting a neighbour’s ox or wife and have to make penitence, but it is quite another to suffer a divorce under a religious system like the Sharia.

Women ought to take particular exception to this proposal in Ontario as they may find themselves without husband, children or financial support if they fall within a certain religious community. In fact, some men might convert to being Muslim if they think there may be a divorce in their future in order to escape the financial burden of alimony. Is this the legal system we have struggled to perfect for hundreds of years?

Perhaps it is time to rethink our ‘family’ laws and get them out of the hands of the churches and into the public domain. There are no doubt accommodations to be made, as was done with the Sikh headdress and the Mounties. The ideal of the Cultural Mosaic should be cherished in Canada, but we must not erode that Charter of Rights and Freedoms for all in favour of religious beliefs.

And from my perspective, to do so, we need to more clearly separate Church and State.