Marginal Christianity

Another “test” for Jesus arises as he journeys to Judea and beyond the Jordan. A crowd gathers and Jesus teaches as per usual. What is this “test” or trap? Jesus is at the place where John the Baptist launched God’s New Exodus movement. And John got in trouble with Herod for criticizing his marital unfaithfulness. Can the Pharisees get Jesus to say something about marriage and divorce that would undermine his messianic movement? Further, in Mark’s day, under the pressure of the impending war with Rome, families were divided and torn apart (Mk.13:12ff.). What would Jesus say to those in this crisis? This is clearly not a straightforward doctrinal discussion! Jesus answers their question with one of his own: “What did Moses command you?” (v.3). Here he unearth’s the real issue at stake: authority. Moses is the Pharisees’ authority. And they present his teaching accurately: he allowed divorce with the husband’s penning a “certificate of dismissal” (v.4). Or do they? Moses ...

October 31, 2017 The following blog is written by Dr. Branson Parlor. Branson is an ordained elder in the Reformed Church of America and a professor of Theological Studies at Kuyper College in Grand Rapids, MI. When you think of the word “wedding” or “marriage,” what do you think of? Words are tricky. They can mean a variety of things to a variety of people. That variety explains why my kids find Amelia Bedelia hilarious. Maybe you’ve read these stories to your kids or remember reading them as a kid as well. The main storyline usually revolves around Amelia misunderstanding and misapplying a common phrase or idiom. For example, when instructed to “dust the furniture,” she throws dust all over the furniture, an action that does make you stop and think: why do we say “dust,” and not “undust” the furniture? The real point of Amelia Bedelia, though, is that what we do shapes what words mean , and vice versa . So, for Christians, what does “marriage” mean? In the ...

Posted on  6 December, 2016  by  Jason Goroncy  ‘There really is no such thing as “Christian marriage” as the term is commonly used. “Christian marriage” is a vain, romantic, unbiblical conception. “Christian marriage” is a fiction. There is no more an institution of “Christian marriage” than there is a “Christian nation” or a “Christian lawyer” or a “Christian athlete.” Even where such terms are invoked as a matter of careless formulation and imprecise speech, they are symptoms of a desire to separate Christians from the common life of the world, whereas Christians are called into radical involvement in the common life of the world. To be sure, there are Christians who are athletes and those who practice law, and there are Christians who are citizens of this and the other nations. But none of these or similar activities or institutions are in any respect essentially Christian, nor can they be changed or reconstituted in order to become Christian. They are, on t...

  June 4, 2015 by Michael F. Bird Leave a Comment These days, we are hearing about the evils of hetero-normativity, the prejudiced and intolerant view that heterosexual relationships are somehow normal. But coming to a theatre near  you will be mono-normativity, the prejudiced and intolerant view that monogamous relationships are somehow normal. Australian activist Simon Copland has an article on Same Sex Marriage Has Been Won: But The Real Fight is Only About to Begin  which is really quite disturbing. I used to think the claim that LGBT activist want to legalize same-sex marriage just so they can completely deconstruct it was just right-wing fear-mongering. But this is exactly want Copland wants to do. While monogamous marriage still works for many, our society is increasingly questioning whether it should remain as the only option. The question is where will the newlywed gays and lesbians stand? For years now the more promiscuous in the queer...

Fr. Stephen Freeman When couples come to ministers to talk about their marriage ceremonies, ministers think it’s interesting to ask if they love one another. What a stupid question! How would they know? A Christian marriage isn’t about whether you’re in love. Christian marriage is giving you the practice of fidelity over a lifetime in which you can look back upon the marriage and call it love. It is a hard discipline over many years. – Stanley Hauerwas No issues in the modern world seem to be pressing the Church with as much force as those surrounding sex and marriage. The so-called Sexual Revolution has, for the most part, succeeded in radically changing how our culture understands both matters. Drawing from a highly selective (and sometimes contradictory) set of political, sociological and scientific arguments, opponents of the Christian tradition are pressing the case for radical reform with an abandon that bears all of the hallmarks of a revolution. And they have moved int...

In USA Today columnist Anthony D'Ambrosio reflects on the reasons marriage tends to fail today ( http ://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2015/04/07/sex-columnist-5-reasons-marriage-doesnt-work-anymore/25398635/ ). They are: 1) Sex becomes almost non-existent. 2) Finances cripple us. 3) We're more connected than ever before, but completely disconnected at the same time. 4) Our desire for attention outweighs our desire to be loved. 5) Social media just invited a few thousand people into bed with you. This rings true for me. But I'm not interested in marriage here. Rather, I want to reflect on these dynamics in regard to the church. The church has failed as radically as marriage has, perhaps more so. To what degree are these dynamics D'Ambrosio identifies operative in it as well? Sex becomes almost non-existent. Physical expression of love (“love one another”) falls prey to the urgency of other “necessities” and allures of ...

October 31, 2014 by Seth Adam Smith 5 Comments   Seth Adam Smith says real love transcends feelings to become an unconditional commitment to an imperfect person. ___ My wife and I have known each other since high school, but didn’t date until much later. We had only dated a couple of weeks before we realized that we were madly in love and wanted to get married. I was all for it! I even suggested a spontaneous, immediate wedding in Vegas. (Seriously.) Kim, however, was a bit more practical about the whole thing. She wanted to take time to plan it all out. I felt deflated. “We’re so different,” I said. “You like to plan, while I like to be spontaneous.” Funny as it may seem, the more I think about this conversation the more I’ve come to realize that planning to love someone—or choosing to love someone—is actually one of the most beautiful things about love. Kim’s eyes widened. “I can be spontaneous!” she said, hurriedly. “I can totally b...

http://thinkchristian.reframemedia.com/rob-bell-and-oprah-aside-marriage-wasnt-designed-to-solve-loneliness Branson Parler 02/20/15 In a recent appearance on Oprah’s Super Soul Sunday to promote his latest book, The Zimzum of Love ,  Rob Bell made remarks on marriage that are causing consternation among some and receiving applause from others. In the interview, the Pastor Emeritus of Mars Hill Bible Church expressed his sentiments that the church is “ moments away ” from affirming same-sex marriage, following the broader cultural consensus along those lines. Here’s part of Bell’s rationale for his position: “One of the oldest aches in the bones of humanity is loneliness. …Loneliness is not good for the world. And so, whoever you are, gay or straight, it is totally normal, natural and healthy to want somebody to go through life with. It's central to our humanity. We want someone to go on the journey with.” I think he’s right on here. As relational beings...

  “A marriage which does not constantly crucify its own selfishness and self-sufficiency, which does not “die to itself” that it may point beyond itself, is not a Christian marriage. The real sin of marriage today is not adultery or lack of “adjustment” or “mental cruelty.” It is the idolization of the family itself, the refusal to understand marriage as directed toward the Kingdom of God. This is expressed in the sentiment that one would “do anything” for his family, even steal. The family has here ceased to be for the glory of God; it has ceased to be a sacramental entrance into his presence. It is not the lack of respect for the family, it is the idolization of the family that breaks the modern family so easily, making divorce its almost natural shadow. It is the identification of marriage with happiness and the refusal to accept the cross in it. In a Christian marriage, in fact, three are married; and the united loyalty of the two toward the third, who is God, k...

“A marriage which does not constantly crucify its own selfishness and self-sufficiency, which does not “die to itself” that it may point beyond itself, is not a Christian marriage. The real sin of marriage today is not adultery or lack of “adjustment” or “mental cruelty.” It is the idolization of the family itself, the refusal to understand marriage as directed toward the Kingdom of God . This is expressed in the sentiment that one would “do anything” for his family, even steal. The family has here ceased to be for the glory of God; it has ceased to be a sacramental entrance into his presence. It is not the lack of respect for the family, it is the idolization of the family that breaks the modern family so easily, making divorce its almost natural shadow. It is the identification of marriage with happiness and the refusal to accept the cross in it. In a Christian marriage, in fact, three are married; and the united loyalty of the two toward the third, who is God, keeps the two in an...