I won't join you, says a pastor

[Classik]

I won't wed you!

A pastor believes in the 'do not be uneqaully yoked with an unbeliever' Christian practice and says, if a female brings an unbelieving man (which she wants to marry) to church and tells the church: here is the man I want to marry, he will not join them. He made it simple that he won't wed them.

Is this appropriate that a pastor refuses to join a two, where the man or the woman is an unbeliever? (Let's assume the other is a christian. The question now is: why should s/he even go for an unbeliever? Now, Not looking at the decision of the man or the woman to marry an unbeliever, is it right for a pastor to refuse wedding the two?).
Kind of strage.

 

[DarkHorseRising]

The pastor is ultimately free (from society's point of view) to wed whoever he chooses. Separation of church and state.

From a religious point of view, what God has joined together, let man not separate (Mark 10:9). If this couple has prayerfully sought God's advice to marry, and He has answered them, the pastor doesn't have the authority to overrule God.

As to the issue of marrying an unbeliever, again it's between them and God. I wouldn't lose any sleep marrying a non-Believer.

I do, however, wonder why the "unequally yolked" commandment is exclusively, completely, 100% applied to romantic relationships. I've read the entire chapter of 2 Corinthians 6, and nothing there suggests anything about romantic relationships. But seriously, when was the last time people saw that verse applied to anything else?

Same tired old Christian modus operandi. People who married a believer feel very secure in condemning anyone who doesn't; yet they do business with nonbelievers, have nonbelieving friends, employers, landlords, elected officials, you name it. Nobody suggests un-yolking themselves of those relationships.

 

[reba]

Mixed thoughts on this .... i can sure tell ya a good reason for not marring an unbeliever 48 years worth.... :eeeekkk

some of questions come to mind...

Does the pastor not allow them to sit in the fellowship? Married or unmarried

Are they living together already?

 

[txgirlmaddy]

I think Pastors should be very supportive and friendly and non-threatning with non-christians that come into the church. It is wrong to judge them, what we should do is lead by example and show him the love we have in our church. This is how my pastor handles it, we even have a welcoming team for new people coming in with their boyfriends and girlfriends who may have been atheists before. If your going to Church, your in the right direction I believe. We should show them the love we have for Jesus and eachother. Thats the best kind of preaching we can do.

About the marriage question... not sure. I wouldn't want to marry a non-believer because of my family but I know thats not for everybody.

 

[Classik]

Mixed thoughts on this .... i can sure tell ya a good reason for not marring an unbeliever 48 years worth.... some of questions come to mind... Does the pastor not allow them to sit in the fellowship? Married or unmarried Are they living together already?

They are not living together.