Last week I posted a somewhat humorous anecdote involving ethnically-mixed marriages. Today I want to open that topic for your comments.
I was raised to believe that all human beings are equal. I want to be clear that I am not just kidding myself about that. I was never allowed to believe that the color of my skin made me better than anyone. Segregation and discrimination were evil. It was said that the liberalism that prevails in black churches was due to the fact that conservative seminaries had barred the enrollment of black students. That should be a cause for shame in the church, they said. So I was never a racist in the usual sense of the word.
At the same time, I was taught that ethnically-mixed marriages were, at least, not ideal, and probably not God’s preferred option. There were a couple of reasons for this, and I believed them.
- God created diverse people groups. He obviously wanted his world filled with all of these different peoples. “Red and yellow, black and white, they are precious in his sight.” He doesn’t want all of these diverse colors melted into one “gray” race — does he?
- Wisdom dictates that we marry those with whom we share as much in common as possible. Marriage is difficult enough without adding differences to the mix that are inevitably more than skin deep.
While there is a grain of truth in both of those arguments, ultimately, they both fail as barriers to inter-ethnic marriages. Addressing each argument specifically, can you tell me why?
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7 Comments:
#1 || 09·09·14··10:09 || Jeremy Weaver
1) Because did not create diverse people groups. He created Adam from whom came many diverse people groups.
2) Because homosexuality is wrong.
#2 || 09·09·14··10:18 || Daniel
1. Race is a man made distinction, but aside from that if we were to allow the premise that God intends for there to be no 'mixing' it would follow that there would be no compatibility... The fact that we see compatibility is an argument from general revelation that this was God's intention, especially given that the differences we see came into being after the command to go forth and multiply.
2. What has Christ in common with His bride? If we apply the logic of the second argument against that which marriage pictures, we see that it cannot apply. On a more base level, who on earth has the exact same shade of skin as their spouse? Who then gets to decide what level of variance is acceptable, and what is to severe? What authority does one appeal to in defining these tolerances? What criteria is acceptable and why is it acceptable?
I would start with that.
#3 || 09·09·14··10:23 || David
Jeremy,
Great answer on #2. Not what I had in mind, but a great answer anyway.
Daniel,
I purposely didn’t use the word “race” because it is indeed an artificial distinction.
#4 || 09·09·14··10:28 || David
Except for that one place where I did. Oops.
#5 || 09·09·14··14:37 || pilgrim mommy
1. There maybe distinct people groups but in the eyes of God, it is "in Christ" or "in Adam". There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, etc.
2. The main difficulty in marriage is sin, not the color of skin.
Just my $.02
#6 || 09·09·22··09:20 || David
As man married to a woman from a different hemisphere and the opposite end of the color spectrum, I find the second argument ironic. Those of you who are in a monochromatic/monoethnic marriage only think that you and your spouse are speaking the same language; my wife and I know we aren't! I continue to find myself explaining or asking about nearly every word, phrase, gesture, symbol, song, and behavior (mine and hers). The exercise has proven invaluable as it has taught me a great about meaning and the essence of Christianity outside the intoxicating influence of my own culture.
A mixed marriage takes a great deal of work and involves a great deal of pain, but don't they all?
#7 || 09·09·22··11:39 || David
A mixed marriage takes a great deal of work and involves a great deal of pain, but don't they all?
You mean it’s not just me?
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