The Funny Friar: Faith and Relationships

Tuesday, February 12, 2013

Faith and Relationships

Valentine's Day ( it's Thursday) brings a mixture of sentiments: obligation (“if I don’t do something she’ll get mad.”), hope (“Maybe this year he’ll do something romantic”), and pain (“Are things always going to be like this?” or “I miss him/her so much”).

The day itself, while perhaps more fun and flirty than substantial, is an occasion for us to reflect on the meaning of relationships and Christian faith. I fear we don’t spend enough (any?) time pondering what it means to be a Christian and dating, divorced, widowed, married, celibate, or whatever. We simply take our cues about relationships from those around us and the wider society at large.

I invite you to spend some time reflecting on how your faith does (or does not) give direction to your relational life. From a discipleship perspective, our faith should saturate and color all that we do. Lent, which just begin yesterday (I’ll resist making joke about a Valentine’s Day being a penitential observance), is a good time to ponder how all your relationships relate to God.

To help you begin this process I’ve included some resources below.

Feel free to share your own thoughts and resources in the comment section.

A Prayer for Married Couples