Introduction
Christianity has had its own definition and essence of marriage for some 2,000 years. The Christian definition of marriage is based on the Bible and over the years, marriage has adapted to the social structures within which Christians live. The purpose of this essay is to critically analyze and review the concept of spousal love and its essence and features.
Marriage and Love in the Bible
The very foundation of marriage is found in Genesis 2:18 where the Bible says that “it is not good for man to be alone”. This was mainly because man was created and was alone and although all the creatures of the world were in pairs and every creature had a partner of the same kind, man was alone.
However, some authorities identify that the first man created by God was both male and female because Genesis 1:27 states that “male and female He created them.”. This shows that the man and woman was one entity and the essence of creation was to enable the man and woman to play specific roles in society that they were better at. This implies that men and women had to do what they had to do in order to come together and achieve specific goals.
In the end of trying to make the world better independently, a man would have to leave his father’s house and be united with a woman and become one flesh. This means that a man will find a soulmate and return to the original form and original self that the man had before the separation occurred.
Therefore, marriage is an institution that gets two Christians to come together to fulfil the original and God-created duty of man to work with a woman to make the world a better place. This is the best way man can discharge the spiritual obligation of making the world a better place and taking care of the world that God created. It is through marriage that human beings can achieve their greatest potential and do what is expected of them in the highest way and form.
Ephesians 5 defines marriage within a Christian context. It shows that a man and his wife must work together to establish the body of Christ by setting up a home that is fitting of God’s presence and God’s activities. Therefore Apostle Paul had to remind Christians that in all situations and in all contexts, there is the need for Christians to avoid the abominable practices of Romans and Greeks which did not respect and honor family sanctity. This is supported by I Corinthians 7 which encourages people to do the right thing and stop having sex with people they do not have any spiritual or socially recognized connection and bond with.
The Christian doctrine of marriage therefore creates the parameters and boundaries for the conduct of sexual and intimate activities within a context of a recognized union. This union will have to be carried out in the church and must be recognized within the doctrine of the Bible and its application. Marriage therefore creates a distinct arena and area within which certain things of an intimate nature can be exchanged between two people. And this includes passion and companionship, legitimate sexual pleasure, procreation and the ability to work together and assist each other and raise children in love and within the Christian values and the core values of the Christian faith and its activities. This comes together to define the meaning of love and its exchange amongst spouses.
Metaphysical Analysis of Love
There are many conceptions and views of love. One of them states that “love is always a mutual relationship between persons" based on "particular attitudes toward the good, adopted by each of them individually and by both jointly". This means that love is about a process whereby people make a conscious choice to build a relationship between themselves. This includes jointly building a connection and relationship that encourages the people to become one and work to achieve the best results for both of them.
Love is linked to attraction and this attraction is to be viewed as some kind of complementary effort to bring two opposites together. This is because love gets two different people with two different feelings, sentiments and backgrounds to come together for the attainment of their common good.
Love is about desire and the need to complement each other. Thus, two separate individuals come together and assist each other in order to build a home and create a family. This is similar to what the Bible says about Adam where God said there is the need to create a help mate that will alleviate the loneliness from Adam. Thus, the ability to complement each other helps them to become one and this enables the man and the woman to “become one flesh” as the Bible puts it. This involves the ability to work together for the common good of the two and this leads to positive results and better results in everything they do.
Spousal love is about creating goodwill and reciprocity. This is about doing the best one can do for the other in order to ensure the best interest of the other party. This is complemented by the fact that the other partner also works to achieve the best interest and the best desires of the other. This two-way kind of relationship means that a couple can work together for the best interest and the best goals of the union and this leads to goodwill and reciprocity.
Furthermore, love in marriage leads to friendship and companionship. Friendship and companionship is about being each other’s friend and associate and exchanging information and personal pleasantries and also, working to achieve the best of everything between them. This is often consolidated through intimacy which is expressed through a kind of personal connection and linkage that can only be shared between two people and no one else. This promotes the best kind of connection that lays the foundation for the creation of a home.
Also, Christianity requires that sexual urge is linked to the natural course of divine creation. This is because sex must not be used for recreation, but rather for procreation. Christianity views love and sex as important parts of relationships and it involves a situation where women and men need to work together and share love in order to get pregnant and conceive a child and raise the child. This is because children born outside wedlock do not seem to have the bright background and foundation for the maintenance of an appropriate Christian home and system that will propagate the will of God.
Marriage provides the framework for sensuality and sentimentality. This is because two people can have various personal secrets and personal sentiments and desires that they can easily discharged through marriage and no other union. Therefore, spousal love must provide an avenue for ethical sex. This means that the parties can have their own personal connection and linkage that will enable them to carry out their intimate affairs in ways that will promote and enhance the union and also enable the parties to have relationships and connections that are good and appropriate for an affair.
Aside that, there is also an opportunity to make a marriage a union for sharing commitment and support. This is because marriage allows two people to have a legitimate platform and system through which they can have various activities and connections which can be applied to achieve the best and most optimal results and processes. Therefore, spousal love is about creating an avenue and system through which through people can remain committed to each other. This means they will give each other what they need and work towards the achievement of what the people need and expect. This is because the parties have a mutual system and process through which they can carry out activities and actions for each other with the hope of building a mutual home.
Support is about financial and emotional commitment to the relationship. This is about providing for each other and a commitment for the creation of a unique and independent relationship and process. This is because support and commitment involves mutually helping each other with the hope of achieving the best results and creating a home for the best results.
Conclusion
Marriage is a divine bond that is ordained by God from creation. It is designed to bring together a relationship between a woman and a man for the mutual greatness of both of them. This culminates in many processes including the formation of spousal love which is about a legitimate and ethical system of coming together to enjoy the pleasures of a union between a man and a woman and also bearing and raising children for the achievement of a good home and a good family. Marriage provides companionship, support, commitment and reciprocity in order to create a home and a family.
BIBLOGRAPHY
Beeke Joel R. Friends and Lovers: Cultivating Companionship and Intimacy in Marriage. Hudson, OH: Cruciform Press, 2012.
Dray, Dennis. Core Love, The Genesis Anointing. New York: Booktango, 2016
Hamilton, Jeffrey. Genesis: A Study of the Beginning. London: Lulu, 2009
Keller, Timothy. The Meaning of Marriage: Facing the Complexities of Marriage with the Wisdom, New York: Dutton Publishing, 2012
Wojtyła, Karol. Love and Responsibility Boston: Pauline, 2013
