Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Faithful?


Just ducky at sunrise.

Do you know who Pat Robertson is? He is the president and host of a very long running Christian TV program called "The 700 Club" He is a baptist minister with 50 years experience and once was a US presidential candidate. He fields questions from viewers of his show and was recently asked if a person, whose spouse had advanced Alzheimer's disease, could in good conscience divorce and re-marry while the patient was still living. His answer was a bit shocking. He acknowledged that it was a difficult situation to be in, but the patient was, for all intents and purposes, not the same person and was not going to live long and the healthy spouse should divorce and re-marry if he wanted to get on with his life, providing that the patient would be cared for.  
National media picked up on this quickly and condemned him for his stance.
How do you feel about this question?
One of the free services this blogger provides his readers, is his opinion. Oh, you had not noticed?
First off, I disagree with Mr. Robertson. I doubt he would find Biblical backing for his belief on this one, and usually he does back up his opinions with Scripture. This flies in the face of what marriage was intended for, and, indeed, contradicts the vows that most married folks take on the day of their wedding. Of course, the vows rarely stop disgruntled spouses from divorcing, but for committed couples, 'until death do us part' is taken completely seriously. Does love and commitment stop at failing health? Do we abandon a spouse when they need us the most?  Doctors say that the last thing to go with an Alzheimer's patient is the feeling of connectedness. When recognition and communication fail, surely love can still be sensed and valued at some primal level. Leaving your spouse under these circumstances is self serving, not at all a noble thing to do.
As for the media's response, it is quite hypocritical. Always ones to criticize Mr. Robertson for this and that, suddenly he is given all sorts of credibility and then given a slam dunk to the canvass by condemning his answer on this question. Where are the national media when the national divorce rates come up in a story. Are they critical then? Suddenly love and fidelity are all important and Pat Robertson is a low down dirty son of a gun. Oh, they like to have it both ways, but their hypocrisy shines through clearly. If you are against divorcing an ill spouse, then you should be against divorcing a spouse for most other reasons too.   


1 comment:

Gaye said...

It's easy for us who are unaffected, to say that we should not entertain the possibility of a friendship with the someone of the opposite sex. Divorce is another issue. AChristian man came to speak to me about me having seen him having dinner with a woman other than his institutionalized 45 year old demented wife. He told me that she was the only person that really understood his situation, AND that he missed female companionship. I thought about that. Right or wrong? Could it lead to "something"? We are quick to judge. We have not walked in those shoes. Each situation is different. I will never judge,an abandoned spouse to Alzheimer's. It's a lonely and painful road. Perhaps giving what is needed to the affected spouse AND having another relationship? I'm sure it happens more than we know.