When a man desires to leave his wife, he does so in the idea that he has a "right" to happiness that morally allows him to. Lewis suggests that he has no such moral right, and that a man leaving his wife is not simply an offense having to do with sexual morality, but rather an offense against honesty.
So, while divorce rate climbs because we follow our sexual happiness, what happens to the character of man? Whenever a man is dishonest, especially when he can excuse his dishonesty in his mind, that man becomes more dishonest.
A man has the ability to make the choice to divorce his wife, true. A man has the right to divorce his wife, true. But I sincerely doubt that this man in question will achieve happiness from this. A man does not have a right to be 6' tall, because he does not know how to obtain it. Likewise, a man does not have the right to be happy, because he does not know how to obtain it. He may think that he has a right to happiness, he may think that he is pursuing happiness, but I sincerely doubt this.
The strongest example of this that I can offer is my dad. My dad divorced my mom when I was eight. His reasoning? He kept on saying to my mom, "I am just not happy." So, he took his "right to happiness" and divorced my mom. I think he honestly thought he was morally justified in this, and that he honestly thought he would make himself happy through this. But I can attest to his misery today. He might blame his misery on his circumstances, but that cannot be. His misery is blamed on the fact that he thought he had (and still thinks he has) the right to pursue his happiness.
I suggest that man does not know how to pursue happiness, so we cannot have a right to happiness.
In Christ,
Ben
Wow, I really like your angle on this. It is so true that we do not really know what we want in life, or even what will make us truly happy. The personal example that you cite is so profound in illustrating this. Even on a small scale in my own life, I sometimes think that things will make me happy, like a new ipod, new shoes, or even a milkshake will make me happy. But in the end, I have a stomach ache and regret spending my money. How stupid we humans can be when we attempt to pursue happiness and don't know what we are getting ourselves into! And before we know it, we have made a much bigger mess than what we started with. Your words here are very very true and convicting.
ReplyDeleteI really appreciate your insight, Ben. We honestly don't know what's good for us. God does not limit our happiness, but rather limits our corrupted version of it.
ReplyDeleteI do not necessarily believe that a man has the right to divorce his wife. In a political sense, maybe; but if that man is a follower of Christ, he has given up his rights and become a slave to Christ. Christ hates divorce, therefore, that man has no right to it.
ReplyDeleteChelsey,
ReplyDeleteI agree that divorce is an awful thing, however, the bible says that a man can divorce his wife in certain situations. I see it kind of as an aspect of protecting yourself, much like church discipline. I think that someone being rejected from a church should be the absolute last step, but it is ultimately for the health of the church, and the individual. The same aspect could be considered for marriage. It's not something we want to do, it's a very very hard topic, but I think there are certain scenarios where it is tolerated in a biblical sense.