Thursday, August 30, 2007

You worship here, I worship there

Here's a line you hear everyday in the club: What church do you go to and how often?

Well, maybe not.

The other day, I was watching an episode of My Wife and Kids where the oldest daughter dates a Bible-thumping teenager. She, of course, is a beautiful, hormonally-charged female. He is always in conflict between his lust and his religious upbringing, often acting as if a kiss is the most sinful thing.

While these two are portraying teenagers, they are also bringing up an issue that can affect adult relationships. Religion can have a great impact on your relationship. When the person attends church services on a nightly basis and serves on several deacon boards and you haven't stepped inside a church since you were christened, it may prove problematic. Or if you have answered a calling to become a minister and your significant other is an atheist, that could also go awry.

However, I have also seen couples of different religions and denominations have happy, fulfilling relationships through a lot of understanding. I've even witnessed people have children and opt to expose the children to both sides.
Do you believe the type or degree of religion automatically affects a relationship? Is someone being of the same religion a factor when you select a mate?

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

It's as with everything else. If one' s serious about their beliefs and dedicates a lot of time to their faith and their partner doesn't, it's going to be a problem. It's the same if we're talking about any other occupation, like a job, a hobby that we put a lot into..etc
One has to take care of everything and attend to everything. It's not easy. I've been there. My parents are like that too. It's difficult but not impossible to cope with. With respect, love and tolerance..

Anonymous said...

I'm Christian and my husband is not. It hasn't been an issue - he encouraged me to have our son baptized and raise him in the church. But we talked about the issue before we were married and that helped. I have discovered, though, that it's much easier to slack off in attendance when I know he's sleeping in at home!