Take note, all ye whose marriages have been impacted by an authoritarian Christian group. In honor of his son’s wedding this week the Internet Monk posted some “proverbs” he wrote for the young couple. He has some refreshing words of wisdom that circumvent the usual categories and stimulate Biblical thinking on the subject. Great, great advice on marriage! Here’s a sampling:
Marriage is like a third person, like a child that has brought you together. It has its own power, but you have to nurture, care for and protect it, or it will grow weak, sick or even die.Admit that being in love and learning how to love a real human being all the time are different things.
The atmosphere in a marriage is a matter of small things done consistently in love, not large things done to make up for failures.
Marriage, like everything else in the authoritarian legalistic group, was framed primarily–surprise!–in authoritarian terms. Get clear in your minds who is the Chief and who is the Indian. But when you really think about, Jesus boiled the essentials down to something entirely different–love one another. And then he demonstrated what he was talking about by washing his disciples’ feet. He did that, the true Lord and Master. The iMonk’s proverbs translate that concept into practical terms.
