Pun intended. Starting today, two of our bloggers–Tony Jones and Rod Dreher–will begin a debate discussion Beliefnet Blogalogue on same sex marriage. They’ll post on their respective blogs and link back to one another. 

Here’s what’s unique about this discussion, and why you should tune in:

First, we did a lot of thinking internally about how to set this up, and how to make it more than two talking heads yelling past each other. Same sex marriage is perhaps the single most charged issue in our nation right now in the wake of Proposition 8 and similar measures. 

To prevent the usual shouting match, Tony and Rod have decided to be as relational about this as possible. Tony, who lives in Minnesota, is flying to Dallas today, where he and Rod will meet for the first time and have lunch together. (Fortunately, Tony had already planned to be in Dallas this week). They’ll get to know one another a bit, believing that presence can steel them against prejudice. 

Second, Tony and Rod are both Christians who subscribe, more or less, to the same creed. We aren’t pitting Bishop Spong against James Dobson. Tony is politically progressive while Rod is politically conservative, but in terms of theology, these two men share a great deal. The same sex marriage conflict is not a conflict between the faithful and faithless; it’s an intra-religious conflict as well. 

Third, Tony and Rod aren’t setting up a few canned essays that they’ll lob at each other in a few rushed days. They will take their time, if need be, in their responses–reading, reflecting, praying as they post. 

Tony’s first post is up this morning, and it’s a nice early effort at merging the personal with the conceptual. Stay tuned for more, and share your own views either below or on Tony and Rod’s blogs.