THANKSGIVING STORY I visited my brother over the Thanksgiving holiday. He's got a beautiful place in Tennessee, very secluded. In fact, it's almost idyllic. The trip is worth it just to see the place, which is always somehow soothing for my soul. The driveway is at least a quarter of a mile long and winds through a canopy of trees. The house is completely concealed from any roadside view. You don't see it till you arrive at it. All in all, it's a classic holiday retreat. So much for the good part. While I was there, he regaled me with a tale of a couple he knew who had dated each other for over fifty years. When I asked why they never married he said it was because of a religious conviction. Seems they'd both been married before and didn't believe in marrying again. Somehow, the sanctity of marriage would be violated if they'd indulged in a second marriage. My brother even assured me that there was never anything conjugal between the couple, stating that the woman's mother always accompanied them on trips. Between you and me, this is the biggest load of crap I've ever heard in my life. I'm not suggesting that I don't believe the story. The load of crap I refer to is the couple's religious convictions. One of the best things Jesus ever said was,
My yoke is easy, and my burden is light. (Matthew 11:30)
The celibate couple may have been religious, but they sure as hell didn't know Jesus. If they had, they'd have married each other without so much as a thought, without batting an eyelash, except perhaps for whether or not they loved each other, which would have been the only consideration. Unless they truly enjoyed the bizarre relationship (which I highly doubt), they were essentially carrying around a big bag of rocks. If they wanted each other in the natural way, the way that God Himself established in the very beginning when He said,
Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh." (Genesis 2:24),
then their yoke was not easy and their burden was not light. In fact, you could go so far as to say that they actually violated a law of God by not becoming "one flesh." It was hard for me to resist becoming a little peeved when I heard this story. I know, it's none of my business what other people do, but the very thought that they hesitated to grasp a form of complete happiness for such a stupid reason really galls me. The church is the primary target of my anger, for putting this kind of nonsense in people's heads. My feelings on the subject can be expressed very simply: God did not put human beings on this earth to suffer.
God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth." (Genesis 1:27,28)
God gave us this whole planet to enjoy, to literally indulge ourselves in. As long as we don't hurt anyone (like by committing adultery), there's no reason we should not be able to be with whomever we mutually consent to be with. If a childless couple agrees to separate, to dissolve the bonds of marriage, for their own personal reasons, I see no reason why they should not be permitted to do so. I can't imagine that even God would care. If they're unhappy with each other, they should separate. God did not put us here to be unhappy. The presence of children could complicate the dissolution to be sure. But sometimes it's actually better for them to be removed from the ugliness that's always revealing itself, even if only as an undercurrent, in an unhappy relationship. Is True Religion Even Possible? The Bible: Why God Had Nothing To Do With It
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