An unhealthy marriage

The Bush administration sure has a funny way of pushing traditional marriage as one of the “faith-based” programs it religiously embraces. How else to explain the use of Unification Church operatives — “Moonies” in another era — as front-line soldiers in the White House’s crusade to promote healthy marriage?

Providing members of Rev. Sun Myung Moon’s controversial church federal funds to serve as so-called marriage specialists seems out of line with a platform of traditional values when the church’s teachings are anything but traditional. Rev. Moon is best known for presiding over mass-marriage ceremonies for people whose unions are arranged by Moon or other church members. The couples are then given detailed instructions on which sexual positions they should engage in during their initial couplings.

Government officials say they don’t ask the religious affiliation of workers for the administration’s Healthy Marriage Initiative, but perhaps it needs to monitor closely whether the millions it hands out for faith-based initiatives are going to credible organizations. Hiring workers from religious groups espousing highly controversial or even questionable acts hardly sends the right message. While the Department of Health and Human Services acknowledges that it’s a clear violation for a person receiving federal funds to proselytize, there is really no way to make sure that isn’t happening.

Programs that blur the line between religion and politics have no place in our system of government. For the Bush administration to continue to fund such questionable initiatives — without knowing the background of the recipients — is hardly the start of a good tradition.

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