by Peter Lampros

Created on: September 27, 2009   Last Updated: October 05, 2009

Divorce is permitted, by the Law of God, as given to Moses in Exodus and Leviticus. This law applies to all Jews, Muslims, and Christians, as all three religions recognize the Law given to Moses as the Law of Divine Providence.

God permits divorce, with the blessings of a judge and a public statement of intent to divorce. This, however, should not be something lightly considered or given to capriciousness. Jesus Christ answered questions about divorce and said it was permitted, under certain circumstances. By Jesus' own statement, He did not come to replace the law, but to uphold it and enhance it. His whole agenda was one of love and acceptance and those principles are diametrically opposed to the principles of divorce. While this may seem a contradiction to His teachings, one must consider that He cannot oppose the will of His Father.

Saint Paul further expands on the issue of marriage and divorce in his letters to the churches. He said, "it is better to be like me (single), but if you cannot you should use the sacrament of marriage. This should not be severed by man, as it is a holy institution sanctioned by God, Himself. The marriage sacrament, itself, is designed to form a legal and moral agreement between a couple who vow before man and to God that they will be joined for life. Many such ceremonies even have a clause that states, those that God has joined together, let no man put asunder.

In Genesis, God says to go forth and multiply upon the earth. This multiplication would be sinful, by Christian standards without the convention of marriage. Sex without marriage is considered fornication. Therefore, it is logical to assume, although we have no way of knowing God's true feelings on the subject, that divorce should be avoided when possible, even though it is permissible.

Throughout the years, the Christian church adopted a stance of intolerance for divorce. This is what created the rift in the church, which created the Anglican church, when the Christian (Catholic) church would not grant King Henry VIII a divorce of one of his wives, Catherine. He began the reformation process, which was solidified by Martin Luther and ultimately formed the Protestant churches as they are today. This was the beginning of a more relaxed approach toward divorce by organized religion.

Divorce was always allowed by God, but only to keep the peace and prevent abuse and maltreatment among the people. It was not meant to create a culture of serial monogamy, which seems to prevail in society today.

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