People across the world were startled when a Christian woman shared the incredibly logical boundaries she and her husband have in marriage, and it's making headlines everywhere.
The married woman's list reads as follows:
"No friends of the opposite sex."
"No ['work spouses'] or being alone with the opposite sex."
"No texting the opposite sex without the other knowing."
"No lusting after others."
"No porn."
"Always put each other first (even over parents)"
In defending the relevancy and validity of those guidelines, Not the Bee pointed out that although couples do not have to follow every single one of those on the list in their own marriage, any husband and wife who do follow them are almost certainly setting themselves up for a good lifetime relationship.
"These are not at all controversial proposals," the outlet affirmed. "In fact, one might even argue that these flow out of biblical principles that have been taught for thousands and thousands of years."
Not the Bee presented various news stories from major media publications to demonstrate how startling these rules are to many individuals. The headlines were written in a mocking tone.
The New York Post headline states, "I give my man strict marriage rules, such as no female friends or texting women."
"Woman's Strict Rules for 'Christian' Marriage Spark Controversy in Viral Video," says the one from Newsweek.
The Daily Mail apparently wanted to draw attention to what they saw as an absurdity by writing a lengthy headline: "Christian woman reveals lengthy list of RULES she and her husband have for their marriage - from having NO 'friends of the opposite sex' to never being alone with someone of the opposite gender."
The Independent UK, on the other hand, underscored their disdain for the "no porn and no friends of the other sex" rule in its subtitle.
"So many people got angry at this lady's videos that it warranted that type of international media response," Not the Bee observed.
Regarding the reasons behind this, Not the Bee argued that the basic idea of why marriage exists, as well as the Christian belief that God ordered it, may have been so completely shattered across the globe that when a couple takes reasonable precautions to preserve their marriage from instability and divorce, many find it hard to believe that it could happen in the first place.
With reference to the biblical passage Ephesians 5:22-23, this news source of satirical-sounding headlines and content expresses great concern over what might happen if people realized that Christians believe things different than what the Bible teaches about marriage.
"Yikes! You mean husbands are supposed to love their wives like Christ loved us (dying a slow death in the most excruciating public execution ceremony ever devised after being slandered, falsely sentenced, and tortured... all on our behalf), and wives are to show respect for their husbands by submitting to their authority and valuing them above all others??" wrote Not the Bee.
"It's almost like the Apostle Paul is saying that husbands and wives should work together as equal-but-complementary partners and put each other before themselves to live out God's design for sex and marriage and thus live fulfilled, flourishing lives," it added.
The bottom line? It is always rational and acceptable for God-fearing couples to uphold their marriage vows by establishing rules or guidelines to counteract external temptations and compromises.
As the Not the Bee puts it, "Protect your marriages, folks, and don't be embarrassed about it."
