CMW-WB-CH08
Create successful ePaper yourself
Turn your PDF publications into a flip-book with our unique Google optimized e-Paper software.
The Happy Family by Christoffel Bisschop (1892).<br />
the bad (e.g., what is irritating, weak, or unkind), then we will treat others<br />
as a problem instead of a mystery, meaning we will feel little in common<br />
with them, making us weak in our desire to seek their good. Thus, it is<br />
essential to keep focused on the good in them — their talents, virtues,<br />
kindness, and transcendent mystery. Good, intimate marriages require<br />
committing ourselves to focusing on the good in the other. Even more,<br />
couples who practice their religion within marriage are more likely to be<br />
patient and forgiving, not only because they feel accountable to God,<br />
but also because they live in the grace (loving power) of God and pray<br />
for one another.<br />
A couple moves in the<br />
direction of a higher purpose<br />
when they invest in the<br />
good of children, God, and<br />
community.<br />
Mutual Identity<br />
Deep emotional intimacy and commitment to the virtues of temperance<br />
and fortitude provide the foundation for a mutual identity that<br />
transcends the two individual identities in marriage. This transcending<br />
mutual identity is open to a higher purpose beyond the relationship<br />
— particularly children, God (religion), and community involvement<br />
(through a network of like-minded friends). When a couple moves in this<br />
direction of higher purpose, the relationship enters a new plane of existence,<br />
serving the good not only beyond the individuals, but also beyond<br />
the couple. The relationship becomes a dynamic force for good,<br />
and when it invests in the good of children, God, and community, they<br />
© Sophia Institute for Teachers Unit 3, Chapter 8: Premarital Sex and Cohabitation<br />
165
Change language