PING!
I was raised kind of sort of Catholic. I was baptized as an infant, but never did confession or confirmation or communion or any other sacrament. I did go to Catholic schools from first grade to 12th, but wasn’t really part of the church. I currently believe in God, but can’t be considered in any real way to be a Catholic or a Christian.
I say all this by way of background so as to assure you that I’m neither attacking nor speaking out of ignorance, but I believe the Catholic approach to marriage is anachronistic, deeply flawed and borders on being anti-human.
While it is highly desirable in many or most cases to try to save a failing marriage, most particularly when there are children involved, it is short-sighted and perhaps even cruel to punish the parties if the marriage doesn’t work out. There are many valid reasons to dissolve a marriage and in most cases it’s positively none of the church’s business. I believe not only that the divorced should be able to receive communion, but to remarry in the church if they wish. God knows far better what’s in people’s hearts and souls than the church ever could.
Just my $.02.
I think it was Msgr. Pope at the Archdiocese of Washington who wrote, “If God can give you the grace to love your enemies, He can give you the grace to love your spouse.”
Jesus commands us to love one another. If we cannot love the person to whom we are married, how can we love the rest of humanity? Marriage between two Christians should be indissoluble as each gives up him or herself to Christ and the other. Most marriages that fail seem to do so because of one thing: selfishness.
Forever? Only until death do we part.
There are times that looks like a viable option.
BFL
I believe people need to be pragmatic about marriage. You should marry someone you have things in common with, sometimes a similar background or experiences, and no idiocy about marrying someone hoping they’ll be fixed, healed, and changed magically.
If I marry, it’ll be someone who is on a same level and someone I can completely understand and see things through their perspective, someone I can’t be judgmental about. For example, I won’t be able to judge my future spouse about being career oriented, because I’m the same way. I don’t want to be around someone who has goals, but isn’t out making things happen that will help themselves attain those goals.
Frankly, no shiftless losers for me.
I think *puts flame suit on* that young marriage these days should be discouraged and women should be in their own career and making their own living. No marrying out of school and men should marry when they are older to avoid messing up and saddled with child support by the time they’re thirty.
After my husband and I attended a Marriage Encounter weekend, our children told us they did not want their old parents back.
They liked the communication techniques we learned. And respected the lock on the bedroom door too!