Introduction
Nowadays, much attention is paid to family relations since the family is understood as the core entity of society. At the same time, divorces have become quite common and do not necessitate the consent of both a husband and a wife. Therefore, people tend to see marriage as not a sacred bond but a union that can be broken easily once the desire arises. This way a family relations specialist is often considered a person who should help couples separate without grievances instead of keeping their marriage together. From the biblical view, however, divorce is seen as a sin that causes suffering to spouses and their children.
Discussion
The biblical viewpoint sees creation as the highest value. Indeed, as God created the Earth, people should develop it by recreating life and being devoted to God in their children. This task is possible only within a family understood as a tightly-knit group. However, as Wolters puts it, “the creational institution of marriage is under special attack in the contemporary West – divorce and serial mahogany are examples of the perversion and violation of God’s good design for creaturely life” (p. 134).
Many argue that marriage should rest on love, and if the love fades, it is fair to break the bond. However, in this case, love is understood as a passing transitory thing that can hardly be the basis for stable relations. In the Christian worldview, and vice versa, love is “the highest standard of human relationships” that embraces all things (Tinder, para 6.). Love lies on the ground for respect and trust that remain in the family once physical attraction disappears.
It must be remembered that the Scripture said unequivocally about the inadmissibility of divorce, “So they are no longer two, but one flesh. What the God has joined, let man not separate” (Matthew, 19:6). Marriage is seen as God’s union cannot be broken unless there are imperative wreasons such as infidelity for it. In the Christian view, marrying somebody is understood as assuming responsibility for this person’s well-being. Therefore, a husband and a wife should treat each other respectfully and learn to agree.
Another argument against divorce is that it may cause trauma for the couple’s children. Indeed, no matter what the parents do, the situation will no longer be the same for their child after the divorce. They will see one of his parents much less often. Children may lack attention, care, and direct contact and feel deprived and defenseless. The situation for the child worsens if the parents begin to use him or her in the war against each other as a tool or weapon of blackmail.
When spouses get divorced, they recognize the unwillingness, and often the inability to agree with each other, to build a harmonious family life for both. The most comfortable way out of this situation is to get divorced. Christian worldview considers such a decision sinful because in this case, a husband or a wife betrays a person who entrusted his or her life or wellbeing to a spouse and for whom responsibility was assumed (Efird).
Indeed, to keep a marriage is more complex than to break it as it necessitates wisdom, the ability to hear another person, and the desire to consider this person’s interests. Crisis in the relationship, therefore, should be resolved not by divorce but through dialogue and willingness to agree. Suppose a person chooses divorce as a way to resolve conflicts. In that case, it is likely that after finding a new life partner, they will divorce them since there is no sufficient experience of coping with difficulties in a relationship.
From the biblical perspective, it is pretty clear that God did not plan the divorce. In Malachi 2:6, one finds, “For I hate divorce,” says the Lord, the God of Israel, “and him who covers his garment with wrong and violence.” Divorce on the part of a man is seen as a wrongdoing to those dependent on him – his wife and children. Therefore, Christian belief necessitates grave reasons for divorce.
When Jesus was asked about divorce, He said, “Now I tell you that whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another woman, commits adultery” (Matthew 19:9). However, more than a sanction to divorce, adultery is the admission of destroyed love and family, the inability to preserve what is no longer there. Christ considers this the weightiest circumstance that can break love and, therefore, the family to the ground when nothing is left of it. Even domestic violence is not the reason for divorce, but evidence that marriage as such has long been gone.
However, for the most part, marriages do not break for such severe and apparent reasons. Often, marriages dissolve just because people are bored with each other or do not make an effort to come to an understanding. However, when love disappears, people are responsible for it. It does not die by itself; instead, it is not preserved when people do not care for love.
Family and love must be taken care of like a fire in which wood is put so that it does not go out. The Bible says, “Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant” (Corinthians 13:4). Love endures and seeks to give more than to gain. Families are built on these qualities of love; therefore, in a marriage, people should be able to forgive and endure instead of seeking divorce when they have disagreements.
Conclusion
The Christian Church insists on the lifelong fidelity of spouses and the indissolubility of Orthodox marriage. The current situation, in which a significant part of marriages are dissolved, especially among young people, is extremely worrying. Divorce can become a real tragedy for divorced spouses, their children, and their families. People in a marriage should seek to avoid conflicts and be ready to forgive so that their marriage stands till death separates them as God desires.
Works Cited
Efird, J. M. (2001). Marriage and divorce: what the Bible says. Wipf and Stock Publishers.
Tinder, G. (1995). Can We be Good Without God?: On the Political Meaning of Christianity. Regent College.
Wolters, A. M. (2005). Creation regained: Biblical basics for a reformational worldview. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing.
The Bible (2001). Reagent Publishing.