Just got home from a wedding...

[Caoimhe]

My nephew (by marriage). It was 2 hours of picture taking, 10-15 minutes of vows... then 35-40 minutes of prayers. The prayers were centered around the concept of servancy (sp). The new bride to be servant to her husband.. who in turn is to be servant to the Lord. So, in reality, what this says is... she, the lowly female, is to listen to and assist her husband in all ways, as HAPPY HELPER.. and he, the man, is to be servant to (as HAPPY HELPER) an invisible cloud being who neither speaks nor listens. Who's fooling who here? As women, are we not born with brains? What is this patriarchal bullshit? I know, you know.. most of us grew up with it. To be honest, I grew up in a Baptist household, so I know the routine. Yet I reject it wholeheartedly. As female, I was born with a brain. I was born with the capacity to strive to achieve goals. I was born with interests, with ideas, with my own goals. Mind you, these are two college grads, she will probably support him for years to come with a much higher income than him. How is it, that people come to adhere to these principles? Or is it really all for show?

Why is it that the daughters of the 1980s are clinging to this old-time religion that recognizes them only in terms of their service to their husbands (at least in words)?

I'm seriously interested in feedback on this. We were basically told today that marriages only succeed if blessed by Christ. We've been married 9 years and love eachother more each day, yet we had a completely God-Free wedding. So, what is wrong with us? I'm just curious as to why people feel they need to swear by some artificial "covenant" to remain true, and in love...

[Heidi]

1. Other couples' wedding vows don't bother me at all,

even if they represent values for which I have absolutely no use; it's when they begin imposing their values on me that I become vocal. In a church wedding, I can certainly understand why the church might have an interest in weaving God into the ceremony; however, the most gracious thing invited guests can do in those situations is just bite our tongues and go on living in the ways most healthy for us personally. :hi: