re when are two people married in god s eyes in article apr geneva rutgers edu rjs po cwru edu richard j szanto writes in a previous article randerso acad sahs uth tmc edu robert anderson says i would like to get your opinions on this when exactly does an engaged couple become married in god s eyes some say that if the two have publically announced their plans to marry have made their vows to god and are unswervingly committed to one another i realize this is a subjective qualifier they are married joined in god s sight i have discussed this with my girlfriend often i consider myself married though legally i am not neither of us have been with other people sexually although we have been with each other we did not have sexual relations until we decided to marry eventually for financial and distance reasons we will not be legally married for another year and a half until then i consider myself married for life in god s eyes i have faith that we have a strong relationship and have had for over years and will be full of joy when we marry in a church first however we must find a church we will be living in a new area when we marry and will need to find a new church community anyway i feel that if two people commit to marriage before god they are married and are bound by that commitment rick szanto rick has nailed the problem down pretty well as i can find no scripture have i missed it that details when you are married i have to make some assumptions based on the principles of scripture it seems to me that it takes parties to make a marriage husband to be wife to be and god if you promise before each other and god that you will convenant together to be married then you are imo so why do we have the ceremonial part that seems to be there for connectedness in the body of christ my brothers and sisters ought to be involved so that there can be some accountability on both our parts that s part of the concept from hebrews about not forsaking the assembling of yourselves together as is the custom of some we need each other because lone ranger christians and lone ranger marriages smack of a self sufficiency that the i don t see in the nt does anyone see the paul simon i am a rock i am an island model anywhere in christianity song lyrics show your age further since marriage is a legal matter institution in the usa and many other places and such laws do not specifically go crosswise to the clear teachings of scripture we ought to obey them to avoid even the appearance of evil i thess so this would imply at least a civil ceremony before marriage but keep in mind we are at least doing all of this for the conscience of others because back to the beginning you are married when you and your intended promise each other and god to be in convenant imo what ch all think bobby akgua rjb in some states the kind of commitment described in richard szanto s posting can create a common law marriage indeed his posting itself might go a long way towards establishing that a marriage exists should the issue ever end up in court he might want to consult a lawyer who is familiar with common law marriage in his state clh
