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Roman Catholic and Protestant ministers or priests are very strongly influenced by their church traditions. They are even threatened with possible transfer or dismissal if they do not adhere to the traditional doctrines of their church.

BEWARE OF THE TRADITIONS OF MEN!

Around two thousand years ago, the apostle Paul warned us of the danger in following church leaders who base their theology upon the "traditions of men" and worldly principles, rather than the divine revelations and teachings of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Colossians 2:8 "Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the traditions of men, after the rudiments [principles] of the world, and not after Christ."

No church is perfect, so this warning still applies today!

Every church has some doctrines that came from the traditions and opinions of men, rather than from God. As a matter of fact, that is why we have so many denominations! Every new church was originally formed because their founders believed doctrines that were different from the other churches. That is why they were founded!

Well, they cannot all be right!

There is nothing wrong with being an active member of a denomination, but those who follow without question all of the traditional views of their particular church will eventually become deceived if they do not do their own Bible study and seek understanding from God.

The Pharisees were a separate denomination (of Judaism) when Jesus walked this earth. Although their tradition of washing their hands before eating was a good one, they had made it into a sacred religious act.

When they saw that the disciples of Jesus did not always wash their hands, they asked him,” Why do thy disciples transgress the traditions of the elders?" Jesus replied, "Why do ye also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition?"

He then rebuked them for their practice of dedicating elderly parents to God just to avoiding taking care of them. "Thus have ye made the commandment of God of none effect by your tradition. Ye hypocrites, well hath Isaiah prophesied of you saying, “This people draw nigh unto me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. But in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men!" (Matthew 15:1-9)

Later Jesus was even more bold when he told them face to face that they were all "blind guides, who strain out the gnat, and swallow a camel" (Matthew 23:24) In other words, they nitpicked over very trivial issues and "commandments of men" while completely ignoring the much more important issues.

Many church leaders still do that today!

My mother was a pious Roman Catholic for her entire life. She made sure that all of her children were baptized and confirmed. When my older brother, Clyde, decided to marry a Protestant woman, this created a serious religious problem.

Roman Catholic traditions at that time did not permit marriage outside of the church. The local parish priest told my mother that she should not attend her son's Protestant wedding because that would be showing approval of the so called "sin" of marrying outside of the Roman Catholic church.

My mother was a widow at the time, so she asked me what I thought. Even though I was only a young teenager, I remember telling her that I believed the church was only a guide, and that she should follow her own heart. She agreed, and decided to go to her son's wedding in spite of the "traditions of men!"

The more important issue in this case was obviously not the traditional views of her church, but rather that she should be allowed to express her love and support for her son and for his future bride.

I still believe in following your heart, for God often speaks through your conscience, but now I add the condition that the desires of your heart must also be in complete agreement with the written Word of God, the Holy Bible.

2 Timothy 3:16 "All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works."

HOW TO INTERPRET SCRIPTURE

In order to "rightly divide the word of truth" and separate it from the traditions and doctrines of men, you will have to know a little about how to properly interpret Scripture.

•Scripture must always be interpreted in context, so you should study the meaning of the preceding and the following verses as well.

•You should not try to establish or confirm a doctrine without the support of at least one other Scripture.

•Your interpretation must always agree with the original intent (called "exegesis") of the Scriptures

Most Bible scholars agree on these three basic principles, but they use different methods in developing their complex and varied doctrines on divorce and remarriage.

The first method that many theologians use is what I call, the "legalistic" approach. This is the use of the rules and principles of Scripture as inflexible law. This is the most common approach, and much better of the two, but often breaks down into "legalism" by adherence to the "letter of the law" rather than to the "spirit of the law".

The second method is what I call the "idealistic" approach. Since the continuation of a marriage is the ideal, those who use this approach claim that there is NEVER any justification for a divorce! It is from this approach that you get radical views, such as the breaking up of a second marriage because the couple are said to be continuously committing adultery!

My own theological approach, if any, may best be described as one of the heart, combined with my belief in a loving God and the inspiration and infallibility of the Holy Scriptures. I feel compassion for divorced people, who are caught in the middle of this theological debate, and I believe the truth of God's word is able to set them free!

I believe God also feels the same way, so I expect that all of my conclusions will be in full agreement with the Bible. As a matter of fact, if you do not continuously see God as a loving and compassionate Father, then you will miss the true intent of the Scriptures, and be just as much bound by legalism and self-righteousness as are some church theologians!

Even as I write this, I am aware that I am "stepping on the toes" of many theologians, who have spent hours of research and study. Nevertheless, I am determined to present this subject as clearly as I can, so that any lay person can understand it. He is the one, and not the theologian, whose life is drastically affected by the interpretation of Scripture.

This reminds me of a story. A circus star was about to cross the Niagara Falls on a tightrope while pushing a wheelbarrow. He asked the theologian, "Do you believe I can do it?" The theologian answered boldly, "Of course you can do it!" The circus star then replied, "Since you believe I can do it, I want you to ride in the wheelbarrow!"

While the questions of divorce and remarriage are theoretical issues to the theologian, they are extremely important life changing issues to the divorced or remarried person! I have therefore addressed this book primarily to the lay person who has been divorced, and not to the theologian.

EVEN THEOLOGIANS DISAGREE!

Lay people often assume that priests and ministers must know the answers to at least the basic questions concerning divorce and remarriage because most of them have been to a seminary or a Bible school. Yes, they are taught what answers to give you, but even the theologians in their own church do not agree among themselves on many of these issues.

Someone once said jokingly that if you could lay all of the theologians in the world on the ground end to end; they still would not be able to reach a conclusion!

And their complex and varied theories have now become so confusing and complex, that most lay people and local pastors just "give up" and accept the traditional views of their own particular denomination!

In 1937 the influence of the Roman Catholic traditions caused the Republic of Ireland to institute a constitutional ban on all divorce! This was strictly enforced for almost six decades before it was finally repealed in 1995. Even then, the influence of the Roman Catholic Church was so strong that it just barely passed with a very close vote of 50.2% to 49.8%.

And Protestant churches are not exempt from theological disagreements! A major Protestant denomination has been debating for decades whether or not to allow the ordination of divorced and remarried ministers. They recently voted against allowing their ordination by a vote of 60% to 40%. The majority voted the wrong way, but I want the reader to know that these and similar issues are still being debated today.

PASTORS HAVE TO OBEY CHURCH TRADITIONS!

The Roman Catholic Church is well known for its position that ultimate authority begins with the Pope and passes on down through the hierarchal structure. The local priest that you may have asked for advice would be at the very bottom of this hierarchy, so he has absolutely no authority at all to change any church doctrines or traditions.

Therefore, even if your local priest should have different views, it is not likely that he would tell you. If a priest disobeys the rules of his church, he could be transferred to a remote parish, defrocked as a priest, or in extreme cases he could even be excommunicated!

Martin Luther was an Augustinian monk who was later ordained as a priest on April 4, 1507. He never intended to start a new church or denomination. He only wanted to correct what he sincerely believed were erroneous traditions and doctrines in his church.

Among many other things, Luther objected to the traditional view that a person must always remain single after a divorce. Even though he had a doctorate degree from the University of Wittenberg, he was eventually excommunicated in 1521 when he continued to object to church traditions.

The threat of being excommunicated or transferred still exists today. One Roman Catholic priest personally confided to me about his concern that something like that might happen to him. He said to me, "What would I do? This is all I know. I don't have any job skills. How would I be able to make a living?"

If you belong to an Eastern or a Protestant church, don't think you have escaped from the influence of church traditions. The Eastern churches are almost as old as the Roman Catholic Church! And Protestant churches have not only passed down the traditions of their founders, but they have had almost five centuries to develop new ones!

The pastors of Eastern and Protestant churches are also threatened with the loss of ministerial credentials, and maybe even their churches, if they do not obey their church traditions! The loss of ministerial credentials, and possibly their church, are very serious threats to pastors. Even if they do not fully agree with their church traditions, most pastors will think twice before risking so much for a church member!

And even if a pastor should happen to be in full agreement with all of the traditions and doctrines of his church, he may not know very much about the issues of divorce and remarriage. It is just not possible for a local pastor to know, and to be theologically correct, on every single issue.

I am not suggesting that you should never seek advice or counsel from your church pastor. Seeking counsel is normally very wise. But if you do not pray and do your own study, you will never know how to "rightly divide the word of truth".

2 Timothy 2:15 "Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”

Let us now begin our study of divorce and remarriage by first determining exactly what the Bible really does say about what constitutes a valid marriage.