St. Paul's Instructions to Christian Spouses in Eph. 5: 21 ff. (original) (raw)
Related papers
Marriage, sexuality, and holiness: Aspects of marital ethics in the Corpus Paulinum
Acta Theologica, 2011
A fundamental change in the understanding of marriage becomes apparent in the first century A.D., described by M. Foucault as the transition from a "matrimonial" to a "conjugal" marital concept. While early Christianity participated in this development, it also influenced it at decisive points and developed its own marital ethics. Through a consideration of philosophical (Musonius, Plutarch) and early Judaic (esp. qumran, Jubilees) texts, this article outlines the marital concepts existing in the NT environment. In this context, the reciprocal community and the duration of the marital relationship are emphasized while sexuality remains wholly limited to reproduction. The core of the article offers a concrete analysis of texts from the Corpus Paulinum (1Cor 5-7; 1Thess 4:1-5; Eph 5:21-33), in which one can recognize, upon the backdrop of a traditionalhierarchical classification of man and woman, an equal and holistic relationship of the marital partners. Simultaneously -and here the Pauline texts extend beyond the borders of their environment -sexual intercourse is valued as an important component of the relationship between husband and wife. Here, the relationship of marriage, including the physical union of the marital partners, is theologically substantiated, and the frequently occurring semantics of "holiness" clearly plays a central role in the context of the marital texts. In the theologically substantiated union of the sexes one can recognize not only traditional, but especially Judaic forms of speech, created through the close interweaving of relationships between the sexes and the relationship with God. In addition, further norms that regulate early Christianity, such as the condemnation of adultery or the prohibition of divorce, become understandable in new ways.
Pharos Journal of Theology
The Bible contains important teachings about the mysterious relationship between Christ and the Church, as explained in Ephesians 5:22-33. This article highlights the deep relationship between Christ and the Church and has important implications for Christian families in the Church, where teaching about the Christian family especially from Ephesians 5:22–33 is only given or preached at the time of the marriage blessing, and even that is not explained well. So it can be said that the description of Ephesians 5: 22-33 is just a routine without meaning. In Ephesians 5:22-33 the apostle Paul uses the analogy of marriage to explain the relationship between Christ and His church. He compared the relationship between a husband and wife to the relationship that exists between Christ and the church. Just as a husband is the head of his wife, Christ is the head of the church. It emphasizes the surrender of the church to the authority of Christ and the love and sacrifice Christ gave to His chu...
Priscilla Papers , 2024
Much scholarly discussion by conservative and liberation theologians focuses on 1 Pet 3:1–6. The wives’ submission to their husbands, the exhortation’s descriptive or prescriptive nature, whether Sarah addressed Abraham as “Lord” and obeyed him, the extent of the obedience or submission of wives to their husbands, the abuse that this passage has fostered throughout church history, the function of the participles, the silent witnessing of the wives, whether wives are supposed to teach, and how to live with an unbelieving husband have garnered discussions and even heated debates. However, these important conversations seem to neglect the equally crucial following verse: 1 Pet 3:7. If it is picked up at all, the discussion of this verse is usually confined to the meaning of the term “weaker vessel.” As such, this article will show the responsibility of Christian husbands concerning their wives and investigate whether in this text Peter accommodates the Greco-Roman culture to promulgate the oppression of wives. The passage will be analyzed in its social/historical, theological, and literary contexts. This will be followed by a lexical analysis of 1 Pet 3:7. Finally, we consider the theological implications of the passage.
Marriage and the Family in the Mystery of Redemption and in the Church's Witness to the World
STS Publication, 2022
Marriage is a covenant, a sacred bond between a man and a woman instituted by and publicly (before God) and normally consummated by sexual intercourse. God’s plan for marriage covenant is permanence, sacredness, intimacy, mutuality, and exclusiveness. That husband and wife (family) are the light of the covenant already established as Christ and the Church (cf. Mark 10:6-9). However, there are lots of challenges in the 21st century, such as the disconnection between love and procreation, the privatization of marriage and family, the increase in divorce, adultery, abortion, contraception, same-sex marriage, and many others. Therefore, the worth and call of marriage and the family is slowly being overlooked. The paper presents how the mystery of redemption could be read in the sweetness of marriage and the family, and how the experience of marriage and the family in the mystery of redemption should be understood and lived in the Church’s witness to the world at large. It affirms that, "Marriage and family are institutions that have been for centuries the image of unity despite differences in culture, religion and civilization, and to some extent, have reflected the belief that neither man nor woman is perfect or complete without the other." Therefore, the paper acknowledges that Christian marriage always exists within a culture and is influenced by it.
Analele Ştiinţifice ale Universităţii “Alexandru Ioan Cuza” din Iaşi. Teologie Ortodoxă, 2020
The state of family dysfunction has produced various complications in understanding and experiencing love, freedom in spousal relationships. Gender roles of husband and wife have been, to a large degree, transformed. Human weakness and various inherited social traditions, customs, and norms biased the role of men and women in society and prevented the full enactment of the Christian doctrine concerning hierarchy in the family. In fact, the social objectification of women and the utilitarian view on sex had obstructed the success of the equal rights movement, and further weakened the man-woman relationship, especially in the marital context. However, marital life in Christianity is a negation of individualism, and a longing for a life of fellowship in a Christian spirit of complementarity. Moreover, equality without sincere, self-sacrificial love is devoid of its essence. This paper examines postmodern voices about hierarchy, headship, obedience, and submission, leading to a happier marriage. In return, it attempts to present ancient and contemporary Patristic approaches to these marital roles, showing that these approaches are divinely inspired for all times and cultures, and experienced as a mystery in Christ. If properly practiced, these approaches lead, to what postmodern voices initially aspire, that is to a blessed, joyful, and prosperous marital life.
Biblical Marriage: Scriptural and Historical Perspectives in Christian Thought
This paper examines common theological objections to biblical plural marriage by analyzing relevant scriptural evidence and the historical context of marriage practices within Christianity. It addresses key objections, including interpretations of the ‘one flesh’ concept from Genesis 2:24, the challenges posed by 1 Corinthians 7:2, and the classification of polygamy as adultery. Through a careful evaluation of church leadership requirements, Jesus’ teachings on marriage, and the implications of polygamy for gender equality, this study demonstrates that polygamy was neither condemned nor uniformly rejected in the biblical narrative. Additionally, it explores the influence of early church fathers and cultural factors that contributed to the shift toward monogamy. Ultimately, this analysis advocates for a broader understanding of marriage within the Christian tradition, recognizing polygyny as a legitimate marital structure that aligns with biblical principles and is relevant to contemporary discussions on family dynamics.
The “ Metaphor ” of Marriage in the Bible
LOGIA, 2019
In Eph 5:22–33 the Apostle Paul delivers instructions to Christian husbands and wives according to the pattern of Christ as Bridegroom to his Bride the Church (ἐκκλησία). What is immediately striking is how Christian marriages are to reflect the divine Marriage, not the other way around. Christ’s relationship to the Church is not “like” marriage in human experience according to a simile; it is a marriage—the Marriage of which Christian marriages provide a dim but real reflection as they bear witness to Christ’s self-sacrificing love for his Bride and her subordination (ὑποτάσσω) to her Bridegroom and his word. Nor does St Paul speak about these things as though Christ’s Marriage to the Church were merely analogous to marriage understood a certain way. The direction of comparison rather runs the other way in Paul’s paraenesis as he exhorts husbands and wives to emulate the Lord and his holy Bride through loving, self-denying, self-sacrificial headship and faithful subordination.
Only in the Lord: Debates over Paul's View of Remarriage in Early Christianity.pdf
Now concerning the matters about which you wrote: "It is well for a m an not to touch a woman." But because of cases of sexual im m o ra lity, each man should have his own wifo and each woman her own husband. The husband should give to his wifo her conjugal rights, and likewise the wife to her husband. For the wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does; likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does. Do not deprive one another except perhaps by agreement for a set time, to devote yourselves to prayer, and then come together again, so that Satan may not tempt you because of your lack of selfcontrol. To the unmarried and the widows 1 say that it is well for them to remain unmarried as 1 am. But if they are not practicing self-control, they should marry. For it is better to marry than to be aflame with passion. 1 C o r in th ia n s ﻟﻮ-1:7 ٠ Text o f a communication presented at the ﻓﺄه7 annual meeting o f ACEBAC (Association catholique des études bibliques au Canada) held at the Dominican University College in Ottawa, on June 7-9, 2 3 ﻟﻢ . 1. The translation is from the New Revised Standard V ersion .