Why don’t we give the same emphasis to love?

I think it is very sad that faith plays such an important role in marital distress and can lead to divorce. In my opinion, we do a great disservice to our children by emphasizing common beliefs and faith, and temple marriage. Why don’t we give the same emphasis to love? I mention this because when differences in faith lead to divorce, I am convinced that the couple got married for the wrong reasons. A marriage based on Christ-like love, or charity, would not suffer from this problem.

Although I agree that divorcing over issues related to faith can seem hypocritical, I don‘t want to completely invalidate the feelings of those who are in the position where a spouse is jumping from the “gospel ship”. Having similar goals, beliefs, motivators and purpose are actually important things to consider when choosing a spouse and have shown to be traits of successful marriages. These are not wrong reasons to marry and they are part of the natural process of being attracted to another. In essence, it makes the journey easier and more validating if both navigators feel they’re headed in a common direction while looking at the same map.

But yes, the concepts of love, compassion, and tolerance for beliefs other than our own are equally important to teach and emphasize when it comes to marriage. Because journeys are bumpy with unforseen curves (sometimes with several ways of attaining the same result), and navigators may find themselves disagreeing on what the best course to take is. It is important at these times to communicate openly and honestly about all options and foreseen pitfalls ahead. Otherwise trust can be severely hampered. And when you can’t trust your copilot, serious consequences can unfortunately ensue.