Married to a Muslim
Brenda, a member of the Resurrection community has a child who is married to a Muslim. I saw her this past weekend and she asked about the best way for her faithful response. Should she witness to her child's spouse? How should she react to the interfaith marriage?
These are great questions, Brenda. My first response is from part of the liturgy of the service of Christian marriage from the United Methodist Book of Worship:
Rejoice in their union and pray God’s blessing upon them.
Do everything in your power to uphold and care for them in their marriage.
As in any marriage, they will need your support, care and prayers. In regard to faith, I believe that it is extremely important that any couple be on the same page about their faith. This means having honest and open discussions about hopes and dreams of living a life of faith together. For some it may be a question of denomination, for others a question of whether or not to be a part of any faith community, for this couple it may be a question of which faith to practice in their lives.
I do not believe that it would be impossible for them to practice different faiths and have a strong marriage. However, I do believe that this may make their life together more difficult. What is your role? I think to be as supportive and respectful of them as you possibly can. No matter what their faith choices, I suggest that you pray for God's guidance in their life and that God might bind them together in love.
Brenda, thanks for the question and hope that you enjoy this response. If you have a question to which you would like to hear my response or a topic which you would be interested in reading my thoughts - send me an email or ask when you see me.
How would you respond to these questions?