Religious practices and information

Menu:

Divorce and remarriage:
many different religious views

Sponsored link.

Overview:

With considerable justification, many people feel that the current high rates of marital breakdown, separation and divorce are the most serious social problem in North American today.

Many Christians have a keen interest to know what the Bible says about divorce. For some, the significance is intensely personal. They feel trapped in a toxic relationship, and are wondering what their religiously acceptable options are.  When they speak to their spiritual counselor,  they will usually obtain only one point of view. Within society generally, and among religious leaders, there is little consensus about divorce and remarriage. Even within one wing of one religion -- for example, among Evangelical Christians -- there is great diversity of belief. ₁

Some faith groups have taken a very dim view of divorce. They have responded with: "Modern day 'shunnings,' the Eucharist withheld, remarriage denied, lifetime celibacy demanded, leadership opportunities refused....some are excommunicated all together." ₂ Others take a more relaxed view. One United Church minister said to me: "If a marriage has died, the only decent thing is to bury it."

One purpose of this section is to present the full diversity of biblical interpretations on divorce, so that readers will realize that there are many more beliefs concerning divorce than the one being promoted by their denomination.

We are emphasizing here Christian beliefs about divorce, because about three out of four North Americans identify themselves with that religion.

Because of the concept of separation of church and state (more accurately called separation of religion and government) the criteria for granting a legal divorce are more liberal than most religions would allow.

Disclaimer:

It is our policy to explain various groups' points of view in order to help our visitors make up their own mind. It is probable that you will reject as invalid many of the points of view described here. Please do not Email us with complaints, accusing us of spreading errors. We are merely reporters of the religious scene. On the other hand, if you feel that we are not representing one of the viewpoints accurately, please do Email us.

Topics covered in this section:

Related section in this web site:

Information from the DivorceGuide web site:

Reference:

1. H.W. House, Ed., "Divorce and remarriage: Four Christian views," InterVarsity Press, (1990). Read reviews or order this book. This book describes the beliefs of four evangelical Protestant leaders concerning divorce and remarriage. All four believe that their approach is biblically based; all four differ greatly in their analysis of the Bible's message on the topic.
2. Quotation from a book news release for Sherman Nobles, "God is a Divorcé too!," Tate Publishing, (2005). Read reviews or order this book safely from Amazon.com online book store

Copyright © 2000 to 2008 by Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance
Originally written: 2000-APR-26
Latest update: 2008-JUL-04
Author: B.A. Robinson