Applying the Golden Rule to gay marriage

As pundits and politicians struggle to divine the political fallout from President Obama’s sudden endorsement of same-sex marriage, one thing has become clear: the Golden Rule invoked by Obama to explain his change of heart is the closest thing Americans have to a common religious law—and that has important implications beyond the battle for gay rights.

In fact, one of the most striking aspects of Obama’s revelation on May 9 that he and his wife, Michelle, support marriage rights for gays and lesbians is that he invoked their Christian faith to support his views. In past years, Obama had cited his religious beliefs to oppose gay marriage—as many believers do.

Obama told ABC News that he and the First Lady “are both practicing Christians and obviously this position may be considered to put us at odds with the views of others, but, you know, when we think about our faith, the thing at root that we think about is not only Christ sacrificing himself on our behalf, but it’s also the Golden Rule, you know, treat others the way you would want to be treated.”