Chris Snead - Marriage

In discussion of Till We Have Faces, we debated the notion of Marriage and whether it was natural. This question is rather difficult to answer, as it entirely depends on our frame of reference. If we consider “natural” as being reflected in Scripture, then certainly it is so. If we consider “natural” as being reflected by Nature, however, the answer seems to be no – or at least marriage is no more natural than the lack of it. Many species of animal do not participate in monogamous pair-bonding for the duration of their lives. Some animals have harems of females controlled by a single male, others mate yearly in ancestral territory, others live in an orgiastic society, others have females eat the male after copulation, and still others reproduce asexually, or can change their gender based on need – and yes, some choose partners that stay with them for the duration of their lives. If we use the Natural world as a model, then we take a much different lesson than what is taught by Judeo-Christian Scriptures. Instead of attempting to force others to conform to the ideas presented in a singular body of text, perhaps it would be better to simply follow those ideas oneself and to allow those who would pursue different marital arrangements to do so as they will.