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by Martin Davie
In February this year the Episcopal Reference Group of the Church of England’s Faith and Order Commission produced a part report on ‘Living in Love and Faith and the Doctrine of Marriage’ (GS Misc 1407). [1]
Annex A of this report contains a paper entitled ‘Nine theses about the Doctrine of Marriage.’ This paper declares:
‘Over the course of nearly 500 years, from the first Prayer Books through to the current LLF process, there is a stable core to the doctrine of marriage that can be enumerated through nine statements, each of which have several further implications and applications. They are as follows:
1. Marriage is the formation of a new unit, the ‘one flesh’ union of a woman and a man.
2. Marriage is God’s gift in creation.
3. Marriage is ‘an honourable estate.’
4. Marriage is a sign of the relationship between Christ and the Church.
5. Marriage is for bearing and raising children.
6. Marriage is the proper context for sexual intimacy.
7. Marriage is founded on friendship.
8. Marriage is permanent and lifelong.
9. Marriage is made (a) by the couple’s free consent, (b) by contracting words of promise.’ [2]
In response to these nine theses Johanna Stiebert, who is Professor of Hebrew Bible at the University of Leeds has written a paper entitled ‘Marriage and the Bible: It’s Complicated’ in which she sets out nine theses of her own.[3] In this paper I shall respond to each of her nine theses in turn.
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