Marriage Advice from Ken Ham

In addition to his other accomplishments, Ken Ham (ol’ Hambo), the ayatollah of Appalachia, the world’s holiest man who knows more about religion and science than everyone else, is also a bit of a marriage counselor — and more. We learned this from his latest post: Is It Time to Abandon Monogamy? Here are some excerpts, with bold font added by us for emphasis:

Should we abandon the idea of lifelong, monogamous marriage? That was the question asked in a recent article in New Scientist by Jessica Bond [We struggle with monogamy – is it time to abandon it altogether?], who argues that, because we’re not very good at monogamy, perhaps it’s time to make “consensual non-monogamous” relationships — in which partners have multiple sexual relationships, but everyone involved knows about it — a norm in our society.

What does Hambo think of that idea? He says:

This argument flows from her naturalistic evolutionary worldview (and the relative morality that comes out of such a belief).

[*Begin Drool Mode*] Ooooooooooooh! [*End Drool Mode*] If it comes from an “evolutionary worldview,” it must be bad! Hambo tells us:

She argues that monogamy is a relatively recent development in our evolutionary ancestry and that, in the past, our supposed human ancestors practiced polygyny, or one male with multiple female partners. Gradually monogamy took over because it supposedly had survival value and helped bring about social stability, but, apparently, we’re still not very good at it. Bond quotes several studies to prove her point:

• In the UK, 1 in 5 people admit to cheating on their partner.

• In the US, over 30% of married or cohabitating couples have cheated.

• In the US, 20% of single people have had “consensual non-monogamous” relationships.

That’s what happens when people have an “evolutionary worldview.” This is all Darwin’s fault! Let’s read on:

Bond then argues that relationships that are non-monogamous — but cut out the deceit by keeping everyone in the loop — seem to be working for some people so “at the very least there is room in our society for other types of relationships. The systems that shape how we select our partners are flexible, and changeable. . . . But that doesn’t mean it is the only way, or the best one.”

Hambo strongly disagrees:

Well, I have news for Bond and others like her — marriage isn’t an evolutionary institution. Marriage was created by God from the very beginning (Genesis 1:27), so he alone has the authority to define it. And he has defined it as between one man and one woman for life. “Consensual non-monogamous” relationships violate God’s design and are a perversion.

[*Gasp!*] A perversion! But see Wikipedia’s article on Polygamy in Christianity. It says:

Polygamy is explicitly not forbidden in the Old Testament. The Torah includes a few specific regulations on the practice of polygamy, such as Exodus 21:10: “If he take another wife for himself; her food, her clothing, and her duty of marriage, shall he not diminish”. … Over 40 important figures had more than one wife, such as Esau (Gen 26:34; 28:6–9), Elkanah (1 Samuel 1:1–8), and Solomon (1 Kings 11:1–3). Moses had 3 wives … .

[…]

Monogamy was the norm among Christians. However, in the context of the sickness of a wife preventing matrimonial intercourse, the founder of the Protestant Reformation, Martin Luther wrote: “I confess that I cannot forbid a person to marry several wives, for it does not contradict the Scripture. If a man wishes to marry more than one wife he should be asked whether he is satisfied in his conscience that he may do so in accordance with the word of God. In such a case the civil authority has nothing to do in the matter.”

Back to Hambo:

Marriages fail because sinful, fallible human beings are part of them. The problem isn’t with marriage — it’s with sin! And perhaps the reason so many marriages are failing is because our culture has abandoned God’s Word and a biblical view of marriage and sexuality and has embraced a sexual ethic where “anything goes.” It’s not time to abandon monogamy; it’s time to get back to the authority of God’s Word, see what God says about marriage, and pattern our lives and relationships after God and his Word.

There’s more, but we’ve excerpted enough. We don’t know what the ultimate resolution should be, but Hambo does, so that should be sufficient for you, dear reader.

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