This morning I linked the Huff Post article, Christians Make The Least Faithful Spouses, According To A New Survey.
The survey was conducted by Ashley Madison. Ashley Madison is a dating website "for people already in relationships." According to Wikipedia, "Ashley Madison is an online dating service and social networking service marketed to people who are already in a relationship with the slogan 'Life is short. Have an affair'." It further states that the service has over 21 million members in 30 countries. Supposedly they "sought to discover the link between religion and infidelity by asking 105,000 of its members about their religious affiliation."
I fear that the article is far too accurate to be simply be cast off by Christians, but far too "messy" to yield up any quickly consumed conclusions.
First of all, many Christians are unfaithful to their spouses.
But, second, the very nature of the website makes the answers of those surveyed suspect. They are unfaithful and probably lying to their spouses, so whether we can get much accurate and faithful data from them is questionable.
Third, where were most of the people polled located? For example, are they in primarily "Christian" countries?
Finally, it does not take into account self-reporting and the "definition" of what a Christian really is. If the respondents are in primarily "Christian" there is a likelihood of nominal attachment to a religion. IOW, they say they are Christians because they aren't atheists or Muslims or Buddhists, their parents were Christians and so on. This survey may tell us a lot about all the sorts of people who claim the Christian name, but little about those who are actively trying to live out their faith. There are (at least in the United States & western world) lots of nominal Christians. On the other hand, there are not likely many "nominal" atheists.
Just something to think about.
1 comment:
In the election of 1860, Abraham Lincoln asked whether the U.S. could exist half slave or half free. In the election of 1960, John F. Kennedy asked whether the world could exist half slave or half free. In 2014, it should be asked whether the human mind can exist half slave or half free. Free in the sense of the faculties in which the Creator put forth. Slave in the sense of the trickery and seducing spirits which have been brought into the world, to where they are considered commonplace by many.
In some sectarian circles, it is the theological viewpoint of tracing ones heritage back to the very beginning of time, thus proving the correctness of their theology. But are they doing so in all matters that are found in the Holy Bible, or only some in which they feel are most convenient? On the subject of marriage, do some of these individuals point to the New Testament as their measuring device as to the pattern, or even before? Are they adhering to the entire marriage process today as it was two thousand years ago? Was the process the same in 1 AD for establishing an opportunity for marriage as it is in 2014? Or do some establish it as such to meet the norm for 2014, or whatever else may be convenient? Could it be they have dared to even research the matter? If this is true, then they cannot rest in a title or doctrinal identity of tracing their foundations back to day one, whether it be Landmarkianism, Calvinism, Restorationism, Sabbatarianism, etc.
Post a Comment