Marriage in Gods Original Plan

A. Purposes of Marriage in Creation

Gods original plan for marriage on sexuality was revealed to man in the momentous account of His creation. There are actually 2 accounts of creation for which we could draw the whole picture of the divine ideal for the institution of marriage:
1. The priestly account (Gen. 1 and2:1) 2. The Yahwist tradition (Gen. 2:2 25)

These 2 traditions/accounts of creation have to be dealt with separately, not significantly for their differences but for their revealing complementarily of the ideas they advanced.

To cite the important passages in the Yahwist tradition (Gen. 2:18 25)
Yahweh God said, it is not good for man to be alone. I will make him a helpmate. So from the soil God fashioned all the will beasts and all the birds but no helpmate suitable for man was found for him. So Yahweh God built the rib He had taken the man from the woman and brought her to the man. The man explained, This at last, is bone from my bones, and flesh from my flesh! This is to be called woman, for this was taken from man.

From this account, we can easily glean the meaning of sexuality as a gift from God to answer mans deep longing to be with another. It is not good for man to be alone. I will make him a helpmate.

 The loneliness that is brought about mans solitude is overcome by companionship.

This could not be fully appreciated without seeing this gift in the context of the Giver, and the reason for His act of creation. It is the gift of sexuality that makes it possible.

Pope John Paul II beautifully said:

There is a deep connection between the mystery of creation, as a gift springing from love, and the beautifully beginning of the existence of man as male and female, in the whole truth of their body and sex which is pure and simple truth of the communion of persons. (John Paul II, 1981).

For him then, the sexes were created in away that they could give themselves to one another.
It is in sexuality itself that constitute the original sign of a creative dominion and the foundation of mans ability to gift himself as a gift. The truth that can be fully grasped comes, from what man and woman are meant for each other in Gods plan. The destiny of their relationship is oneness. (Jack Dominian, 1981).

This oneness is well perceived in the intimate expression of their holiness, or in a more precise term, in their sexuality, although it is not limited to it. Thus we understand why Christian tradition consistently ordains that the expression of sexuality (the sexual act) can be performed legitimately only within the context of marriage. It is also from the biblical passage, that they become one flesh that we find the divine ideal for marriage is monogamous which speaks of exclusive and permanent union demand the fidelity of the spouses for one another.

Passage known from the priestly tradition, Gen. 1:26 28:

God said, Let us make man in our image, in the likeness of ourselves and let them be master of the fish and of the sea, the birds of heaven, the cattle and the wild beasts and all the reptiles that crawl upon the earth. God blessed them saying, Be fruitful multiply, fill the earth and conquer it.

These words show weightier evidence to the fact that man and woman are equal. It revealed the truths male and female are created in the image of God and therefore both bear the intrinsic goodness in so far as they reflect the divine image in themselves. Both of them have been tasked by God to be caretakers of the earth. Man and woman are specifically tasked to participate in Gods creative activity and dominion of life which takes place in their generous of transmitting life. God created human beings as male and female precisely to achieve this purpose: to beget offspring who would continue the creative work entrusted to them.

 The 2 complementing accounts in Genesis provide us with the fuller understanding of the nature of marriage and sexuality as part of Gods plan for his people. 1. The Unitive Dimension expressed in the love relationship of the husband and wife. 2. The procreative Dimension concretized in the begetting of offspring. To realize these values, God ordains that marriage posses the qualities of: 1. exclusiveness, and 2. permanence corresponding to the properties of unity and indissolubility. We can only speak of them as ideals originally envisioned by God. In real historical setting, we find them not being affirmed by men. What accounts for this sad reality.

B. ORIGINAL PURPOSE disturbed by SIN

Genesis 3: The Fall of Man Unwilling to commit themselves in faithful obedience to their creator. The couple listened to and were easily swayed by the serpents wiles and sophistry. They ate the forbidden fruit that the Lord had forbidden. With this act, sin entered the world and things were not the same anymore. As a consequence of sin, we find the introduction of sexual hierarchy (woman subordinated to man, or woman claiming her right to dominate man) and the suggestions of gender roles are both signs and causes of suffering and not part of the design of God in His creation.

C. MARRIAGE Realized Among the Chosen People of God.

Women were distinctly subordinate and their roles were determined by their status in relation to men: as daughters, wives and mothers. Since women were not equal companions of man, their primary function was to bear children who would continue the made line. Marriage was plainly linked to the chain of succession of generations which formed the tribe and ensured its continuity. Viewed from this context, the primary value of marriage became procreation which was then held in great esteem than the kind of encounter between espouses or the quality of their love.

Sexuality appeared only as a means by which couples become involved in the creative and historical plan of God, i.e. procreation.

Polygamous relationships were allowed until about the time of the monarchy. Gen 29:21 30, II Sam. 5:13 16.
Divorce, on the initiative of the husband only, was not unusual. (Dt. 24:1 2). Barrenness was considered a disgrace. (Gen. 30:2) as well as there was tolerance for concubine age as a means to find a substitute for the barren wife in ensuring the continuity of lineage on the part of the husbands. (Gen. 30:1 13). This situation grave rise to so called Levirate law which obliged the brother of a deceased husband to take his wife and raised up a son who will bear the dead mans name and his right to the family inheritance. To give birth to a baby boy is a universal joy for them, while to give birth to a baby girl is a universal sorrow.

D. The Prophetic vision of Marriage as a Covenant:

The prophet Hosea was the first one to envision the relationship of the husband and wife as a covenant, comparing marriage with the covenant between God and Israel.

God through the Prophet, sets forth a vision for marriage which could only be considered a disturbed how reality that needed to be liberated from each subjection to weaknesses and limitations. Hoseas prophetic vision of marriage could only be from the account of his relationship with Gomer, a prostitute whom God commanded him to many. Hosea obeyed, but in spite of this valiant gesture, Gomer went back to her harlotry.

 This covenant and dimension which deepened Israels understanding of marriage was alluded by:
Jer. 3:14: Turn, o backsliding children said the Lord, for I am married to you and I will take you one of a city. Exekiel 16:8 Now when I passed by you and looked upon you, behold the time was the time of love, and I will spread my skirt. Isaiah 54:5 8 For the maker is the husband,

In all these prophetic utterances what has been perceived as the essential element expected to pervade the relationship between husband and wife is the faithful love that God has shown to his people. This covental love brings to mind the picture of a:
steadfast love forgiving love, and sensitivity of kindness