Dennis Prager Divorcing

Dennis Prager.com ^ | December 30, 2005

[onedoug]

Deenis Prager on now discussing his own impending divorce....

[HitmanLV]

I think that you are remarkably incorrect on this.

God crafted the Jewish laws regarding marriage and divorce, too. Jewish law accepts divorce and it was ok with God then.

Second, I don't think the marriage vow is with God, but with each other. That a straying spouse may never experience spiritual wellbeing is their problem, not the problem of the spouse left holding the bag.

I have no idea what would make you think God would put someone through that, given that He crafted rules for divorce in the Old Testament. That is, God knows some marriages go bad and that there is no sound social value in acting otherwise.

Why some of his children can't accept this is beyond me.

[HitmanLV]

I agree with you and have said that many times on FR. In fact, in many cases a spouse that cheats has been alienated from their spouse and seeks what they either can't or won't give them. It's hard to blame someone for that.

There mere fact that a spouse has been cheated upon doesn't make them a saint. Anybody with a mature world view, and capable of interpreting facts just a little more complex than the average sunday funny pages, should be able to know that.

Yet, far too many people can't cope with it. A cheating spouse does wrong, no question. But that doesn't mean the cheated upon spouse is completely in the right, either.

[Mrs. Don-o]

You wrote: "God crafted the Jewish laws regarding marriage and divorce, too. Jewish law accepts divorce and it was ok with God then."

No, it's not "OK with God." The Hebrew Scriptures consistenly associate the breakup of the marital covenant with the breakup of the covenant of God and Israel.

It's about as clear as it can be in Malachi 2:11-15:

"You flood the LORD's altar with tears.
You weep and wail
because he no longer pays attention to your offerings
or accepts them with pleasure from your hands.
You ask, "Why?"
It is because the LORD is acting as the witness
between you and the wife of your youth,
because you have broken faith with her,
though she is your partner,
the wife of your marriage covenant.
Has not the LORD made them one?
In flesh and spirit they are his.
And why one?
Because he was seeking godly offspring.
So guard yourself in your spirit,
and do not break faith with the wife of your youth.
"I hate divorce," says the LORD God of Israel."

God’s plan from the beginning (Genesis), which Jesus strongly affirmed in the New Testament, is that marriage be a lifetime commitment. “So they are no longer two, but one. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate” (Matthew 19:6).

In Deuteronomy, He laid down some laws in order to protect the rights of divorcees, especially women (Deuteronomy 24:1-4)--- but Jesus made it clear that these laws were given because of the hardness of people’s hearts, not because God was OKing divorce. (Matthew 19:8)

There is a cure for hard-heartedness. It's getting a new heart. "I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them..." Ezekiel 36:26-28

This is not legalism ("statute") centered, it is heart-centered. It related to what makes a heart noble (honor and faithfulness) and what a heart needs (loyalty and security.)

It's not some dry abstruse theology of marriage: it's practically a cardiology of marriage.

I've known people who have lived this "cardiology," but one of the best views of it --- utterly unsentimental --- miht be the novel "Ironweed" by William Kennedy. Available here used, for one cent!

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0140070206/002-5423294-3388818?v=glance&n=283155

This guy has ruined his life, abandoned his family, drunk himself almost to death, and in the end, his wife--- well, you'll see if you read it.

We pledge ourselves with our vows, don't we?

[RonDog]

Indexing RELATED threads:

Dennis Prager Divorcing
	Posted by onedoug On News/Activism 12/30/2005 10:21:26 AM PST · 242 replies · 4,482+ views Dennis Prager.com ^ | December 30, 2005
Dennis Prager Announces End of His Marriage Live On His Show
	Posted by Bulldaddy On News/Activism 12/30/2005 10:21:24 AM PST · 59 replies · 2,534+ views KRLA ^ | December 29, 2005 | Dennis Prager

[Dianna]

If two people don't want to have anything to do with each other, and have no interest in working things out (and I can imagine a circumstance where some folks might not be interested in the commitment to work it out), they should go their separate ways.

Oh, I totally agree, I just wish it were different. I think one of the most important things that my mom told me was that she didn't love my father every single day. Sometimes she hated him and didn't think she could stand to be married for even one more day! But...she got over it. They've been married 40 years.

I'm not sure I would have been as persistent in my own marriage had I not understood that you could feel that way sometimes.

[kelly.s]

Yes, I used to ask, "What's up with that?" every time I heard about someone's second divorce. Until it happened to me. First time, I wanted out. Second time, I wanted to stay in and fight. However, if the other party is determined to get out, you ultimately have no choice in the matter.

I don't ask anymore, having had my own taste of humble pie.

[kelly.s]

My parents have been married 50 years, God bless their souls. I am SO PROUD of them! They've been through ups and downs, but always stayed true to the commitment. All of my friends' parents have been divorced.