Dissolution Of Marriages By The Law Courts: Right Or Wrong In The Christian Perspective?
As a
Christian, I have really been worrying over this subject matter. To me, I am of
the opinion that, the courts are surely going against the word of God, as it
relates to separating legally married people (man & woman), using the
courts, another legal entity. Remember, any marriage conducted whether in the
church, in the court, or in traditional way and method has a legal backing and
God’s approval.
To
begin, in Hebrews 13:4, the bible
declares “Marriage is honourable in all, and the bed undefiled: but whoremongers
and adulterers God will judge”. If marriage is therefore a thing of honour,
how then will the courts become the instruments to break this honourable
institution? This is left for the courts to answer.
Right
now, one may be tempted to say God approves device because, in Matthew 5:31, the bible says "It hath
been said, Whosoever shall put away his wife, let him give her a writing of
divorcement". Yes, this is the word of God but, you will not get the
true message until you read the next verse. Let’s go there and read. Matthew 5:32 “But I say unto you, That
whosoever shall put away his wife, saving for the cause of fornication, causeth
her to commit adultery: and whosoever shall marry her that is divorced
committeth adultery”. You see, before you dream of ever divorcing your
wife/husband, it has to be under the case of unfaithfulness which ultimately is
extra marital affairs. This in essence brings to the fore that, a couple that parted ways in divorcement prepares themselves for adultery, which is a sin against God. Exodus 20:14 says "Thou shalt not commit adultery".
Even
at that, Paul declared that, should you ever divorce your husband/wife, be
ready to remain UNMARRIED until one partner in the aborted union dies 1Corinthians 7:11 “But and if she depart, let
her remain unmarried, or be reconciled to her husband: and let not the husband
put away his wife”. The case of divorcement is never a thing that true
Christians should ever consider.
Nevertheless,
there were some people who were trying to prove to Jesus that, they were given
the go ahead order to divorce their wives in Matthew
19:7 “They say unto him, Why did Moses then command to give a writing of
divorcement, and to put her away”? but, the reaction of Jesus in the matter
angered them. Jesus told them that, it was as a result of the stubbornness/hardness
of their hearts that Moses gave them that law, which was never so from the
beginning Matthew 19:8 “He saith unto
them, Moses because of the hardness of your hearts suffered you to put away
your wives: but from the beginning it was not so”.
To get
better understanding of God against divorcement, the bible in Malachi
2:16 says, “For the LORD, the God of Israel, saith that he hateth putting away:
for one covereth violence with his garment, saith the LORD of hosts: therefore
take heed to your spirit, that ye deal not treacherously”. Judge,
Solicitor, Lawyer, are you therefore considering it fun to preside over cases
of divorcements in your courts?
No Man Should Put Asunder What God Had
Joined Together
Marriage
is usually between two people, who have come of age with high sense of
responsibility, and primarily for procreation.
Now,
the bible gives explicit clarification on the issue of divorcement. In Matthew 19:6 “Wherefore they are no more
twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put
asunder”. Also, in the book of Ephesians
5:31,the bible says “For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother,
and shall be joined unto his wife, and they two shall be one flesh”. And in
Genesis 2:24, “Therefore shall a man
leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall
be one flesh”. If the bible so declared that, the two married couples are
ONE FLESH, why are the courts now dividing this one flesh into two halves, and
thereby putting 'asunder' what God had joined together?
Though
not a lawyer but, I do know that the court is a legal institution, established
by law, to address and correct the injustice in the land, to uphold and defend
the constitution of the land, to defend the rights of the oppressed, to settle
disputes and resolves lingering crisis, and so on and so forth. These two
questions therefore now arise:
1. Is
it right and biblical for the law courts to dissolve any marriage that have
been consummated under church, court and traditional law?
2. Is
it also wrong and unbiblical for the law courts to dissolve any marriage that
have been consummated under church, court and traditional law?
Let's
hear your views and biblical scriptures to drive home your support or against
position over this matter. Thank you.
Some Cases Of Courts Dissolves Marriages In
Nigeria:-
1. Court dissolves cleric’s 24-year-old
marriage:
An
Igando Customary Court in Lagos yesterday dissolved a 24- year-old marriage of a cleric over
threat to his life by the wife. “The court has no choice than to dissolve the
union between Raheem Sanni and Rosemary, although the woman says she still loves
the man”, the court president, Mr. R.I. Adeyeri, held. The News
Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the dissolution followed a
petition by Raheem, 54, who said that Rosemary always
threatened his life with dangerous weapons. He also said that Rosemary lacked
respect for him and that she denied him care....
2. Court dissolves 22-year-old marriage
over infidelity, threat to life:
An
Agege Customary Court in Lagos on Wednesday dissolved a 22-year-old marriage between
Adewale Oluokun and his wife, Titilayo, noting that the marriage had broken
down irretrievably. The Court President, Mr Emmanuel Sokunle
said: “Starting from today, you cease to be addressed as
husband and wife. “The custody of the children is referred to the Family Court, Ikeja,
for final decision. “In the interim, the children will
remain with their mother and since she didn’t demand any money
from their father, the man is ordered to go his way and
maintain the peace. Sokunle also ruled that the respondent
should stay away from his former wife and that at no time
should he come near her....
3. Drama, As Court Dissolves
21-Yr-Old Marriage:
She
wept like a baby as the court said they had ceased to be husband and wife after 21 years of
marriage. She denied all the allegations levelled against her including the
killing
of the junior wife and her child. It all happened at an Agege Grade A
Customary Court, Lagos where the husband, Wahab Adekola, had
dragged her over alleged fetish acts and nagging....
4. Court dissolves 25-year-old marriage in
Lagos:
A
25-year-old marriage between one Mr Kayode Oladepo and Mrs Comfort Oladepo has
been dissolved by a Grade ‘B’ Customary Court sitting in Orile-Agege, Lagos State.
The
President of the Customary Court, Mr Joseph Adewusi, had ruled that the marriage between two had
broken down due to the husband’s unfaithfulness and his drunken
attitude. “Starting from today, you seize to be addressed as husband and
wife. You
shall go your separate ways unmolested. The custody of the children
is referred to the Family Court, Ikeja but in the interim, the
children should remain with their mother....
5. Courts dissolve 52 marriages in Kwara:
No
fewer than 52 marriages were dissolved by courts in Omu-Aran, Kwara State in
2012, the News Agency of Nigeria reports. Some of the reasons adduced for the dissolution included lack
of love
between the parties, desertion, irresponsibility and uncaring
attitude. Other reasons adduced were infidelity, cruelty, battery and
drunkenness.
Investigation
showed that of the 86 cases filed, 30 traditional marriages were dissolved by the Area
Court while the remaining 22 court marriages were dissolved by the
Upper Area Court and High Court....
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