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Divorce Help For Women

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Generally, people have no idea what a divorce involves.

They focus mostly on the “right and wrong” of getting a divorce and a large number opt to oppose the idea for any reason. It is generally not well accepted, especially in religious circles, so the practicalities of getting a divorce are usually ignored.

While some divorces can be avoided and we applaud couples who manage to stay together, not every marriage can be saved. And, if that is true then we should put as much time into helping people get through a divorce effectively as we do helping them to avoid it. Little, however, is offered in that regard.

Often friends, associates and even family continue to express regret over the breakup, after the fact, which only feeds the pain and does little to help the struggling party get on with life.

It is no wonder that divorce is one of the most traumatic experiences a person can go through. Not only are they dissolving one of the closest relationships in life, they are left hanging with very few understanding friends who are willing or able to meet their emotional needs or provide guidance. That is tantamount to losing support from every direction.

But that is where Tracy Scorzafava’s book comes in handy.

In DIVORCE 101: A WOMAN’S GUIDE TO DIVORCE Tracy provides emotional insight and practical support for those navigating a divorce and she is writing from experience. She’s been there and in her experience: [Read more…] about Divorce Help For Women

Jesus And Divorce, Matthew 5

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Jesus gave us a rule of thumb to gauge when divorce is appropriate.

Was Jesus Writing
A New Rule
Or Confirming An Existing One?

In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus made some very interesting remarks about divorce:

It has been said, whosoever shall put away his wife, let him give her a writing of divorcement: 32 But I say unto you, that whosoever shall put away his wife, except for the cause of fornication, causes her to commit adultery and whosoever shall marry her that is divorced commits adultery. Matthew 5:31-32

And by these remarks He threw everyone into a tailspin. Or at least it seems that way judging from the many diverse – and bizarre – interpretations imposed on the text.

Not A New Rule

Many people treat His statement like a completely new and inflexible rule that was intended to draw an indelible line in the sand, and anyone crossing the line is eternally doomed. But this can’t be the correct understanding.

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Jesus was clarifying an Old Testament statute not writing a new one and the clarification represents no modification on the original ruling which, by the way, was quite liberal. You can read about the Old Testament teaching here. For now consider the following:

  • Any understanding of what Jesus said in the New Testament starts with what was said in the Old – the context in which divorce was first introduced.
  • Suggesting Matthew 5 disallows divorce and/or remarriage totally ignores the Old Testament or at least reshapes it beyond recognition.
  • If you honestly accept the context of the Old Testament, in which divorce was freely allowed, you cannot then think Jesus was fabricating restrictions that disallowed both divorce and remarriage, a complete reversal.
  • What Jesus essentially said – if adultery doesn’t occur before divorce it occurs after – changes nothing. That outcome is equally true in both the Old and New Testaments.

There aren’t enough word studies and grammatical arguments to erase these facts and whatever studies one produces are trumped by context every time anyway.

What Is Adultery

For the record, traditional definitions of adultery and fornication, which Jesus did not agree with, are: [Read more…] about Jesus And Divorce, Matthew 5