Actually  we should blame King Henry the 8th~ before that divorce(the sacredness of marriage was solid~divorce only by Papal decree).Once he established the Church of England and got divorce by law/court,it was all over.P.S. This was a funny post !

Sorry Sage you are in error.  In historical Orthodox Christianity all Bishops were equal in dignity.  Part of the Roman Catholic schism was the Pope of Rome who was a prisoner of the Western Emperor Charlemagne, for political purposes , the captive Pope claimed to be first among Bishops.  This led to the Western Church separating itself from the rest of the Orthodox Church.  Historically the power to grant a divorce rest on the governing local Bishop.  King Henry the 8Th while separating the Church of England from control of Rome made a further mistake when he made himself the head of the English Church.  In Orthodox Christianity the power of Church and State ideally have been separate.  The Emperor saw to the temporal good of the people and left the spiritual good to the appointed Patriarchs. 

Not really error~just did not go back into history that far~ did those Bishops grant divorces? This is the kind of stuff I have begging you do put on your blogs Way. I really do not know all that much about the Orthodox Church,but have decided to study it for historical background~ on the net.

Whoa, the Pope of Rome was not by that time theologically superior in rank to other bishops?  That goes against a lot that I've read/been told.

Also, I thought marriages could be annulled, but not divorced?

Granted, I'm not a scholar on this subject.

Thanks for commenting, by the way!

Good for you Sage.  As I understand it divorce is allowed if there is infidelity in the marriage or by economia ( a Greek word meaning the rules can be bent, out of compassion) if the marriage is just insufferable with no hope of healing for both parties.  This is at the digression of the local Bishop.  Also a person out of economia can remarry ,but not more than 3 times.  That is were King Henry the 8Th really pushed it.  I am no expert of the Canon's or the guidelines of the Church though. If you want better advice I suggest asking Father Joseph the Local Orthodox Priest.  Check my profile for links to the local Parish website and the Archdiocese.  

I could be wrong about that~ I think your right, "annulled" because of  "barren womb" and all that. Woe to the King who could not produce offspring. I wonder how many "baby's daddy's" were really from cousins instead of the King's "loins" ? It had to be the woman's fault,right !??! lol

After 1054 the Roman Catholic officially separated itself from the Orthodox Church and the Pope of Rome assumed control over the rest of the Bishops of the Western Church.  The Orthodox Church has continued in the traditional collegial fashion with no Bishop having a greater voice than any other Bishop.  Annulment means the marriage never happened and that would depend if it was consummated.   

I hate it when I agree with Wayfarer but once in a while he slips and displays some intellectual and (at long last) honest thoughts. Knock it off, Way! You'll ruin our relationship.

Nick!  Excellent article. Bravo!

HM~ LOL Way can be a great friend,we agree rarely ,however he has always been fair to me.

Talk to any member of any heterosexual union you know 

I am straight and I could not disagree with you more. I know many others that are straight and think that the sanctity of marriage being attacked is just sheep's clothing hiding the real agenda of discriminating against a particular group, just because they might do things differently. Like many other straight people, I know that a vote against 8 is about protecting my children from other people's religious beliefs that differ from my beliefs. I know that a vote against 8 protects my children if one or more of them happen to be gay, which is biological and not a choice. I know a vote against 8 supports our government's establishment of checks and balances, where the judicial branch interprets the  constitutionality of laws. I know of vote against 8 continues anti-discriminatory laws that ensure that every US citizen has the same right to any governmentally sanctioned institution. I know a vote against 8 will break the separate but equalness of marriage vs. domestice partnerships or civil unions. Most of all, I know a vote against 8 is what patriotic Americans should do, putting country before anything else, and ensuring freedom for All.

LOL spread the fear! Wow...really gays getting married does not affect you, your christianity, your family, your church...it has nothing to do with you.

BTW

Elayne Boosler wrote the following artical:

Gay marriage has been legal in California since June of this year. That means we have already had the unfortunate benefit of experiencing its predicted erosion of the sanctity of real marriage. Make no mistake, it has wreaked havoc. Just knowing that gays are marrying has ruined my husband's ability to achieve an erection. Yes, this does date back to before June of this year, but since June of this year, it is all about that. And let me assure you, as he has assured me, this has nothing to do with my weight problem, or my refusal to let the devil into our bed by talking dirty, changing position, or moving.

Are gays shallow enough to think that just because they can get married, they will get married? They apparently do not understand the sanctity of begging, pleading, waiting, begging, pleading, threatening to tell his wife, attempting suicide, and finally getting pregnant to at last lead your mate toward that most hallowed and blessed ground, the Las Vegas wedding chapel. No, gay people, Elvis is not a Halloween costume. He is a legally licensed joiner of souls in the great state of Nevada. What can gays ever know about your family's joy in knowing that at last, yes, your children are going to have a father.

Marriage takes work and practice, and that is why gays will never get it right. How can they hope to compete with the knowledge earned by doing? With the expertise gained by Rush Limbaugh and his three sacred marriages? Newt Gingrich and his two sacred marriages? Ronald Reagan, John McCain, Prince Charles, Rudy Giuliani, all pillars of society and all married over and over to hone the sanctity and commitment necessary to maintain the bedrock of a society, marriage between a man and several women. Nowhere does the Bible say marriage is between a man and a man trapped in a woman's body. And as long as the President of the United States is sworn in with his hand on a Bible instead of on the Constitution, then we must make sure the Bible protects the Constitution. Besides, Billy Bob Thornton, Elizabeth Taylor, and Angelina Jolie took up sixteen marriages between them. We don't have any extra.

Gays getting married will also ruin our economy. You can be sure you will never see a persimmon colored cap-sleeved crepe bridesmaids dress at a gay wedding. An entire industry will be put out of business overnight.

Gay marriage will make a mockery of real marriage. Everybody knows gays are promiscuous, uncommitted, multiple-partner-having people. They are not like us. We believe that people should be married and settle down.

And lastly, and perhaps most destructive of all, gays being married will tacitly send the message that fellatio is an accepted part of marriage. What could be more ridiculous?

• Gay Marriage

Jared, I'm not sure if you were being ironic or not, but I just want to assure you that my article is.  I'm totally with you on the No on 8 thing.

aw nick~ now the fun is over...but at this point it probably did need clarifying.

My favorite satirical song on the subject is a year old now, but it's still relevant. (Warning, political underwear exposed).

http://www.youtube.com/watc...

I am straight but could care less if gays want to marry each other. Who are any of you to judge. How does that affect your marraige? None. You just want to try and control others with your sorry ass views when you should keep them to yourself. The Mormons from Utah are the ones who started the prop 8 thing and pumped millions into it. I guess gays should do as they are told and I guess it is okay to have several wives as long they are of the opposite sex.  There are many bad and evil things to fight in this world. 2 people wanting to spend their life together is not one of them.  All of you haters get a life. Do you not have any useful purpose to your life other than to try amd make everyones elses miserable?

White Christians?  Sorry if you are black, mexican, phillipino, etc and are a Christian - you don't count.

The joke is that this is a movement that, from my own anecdotal experience at least, seems to be primarily perpetuated by white male Christians, i.e. the historically dominant group in this country.  So it's rather hilarious that they are claiming to be under attack.

The art of satire.