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Jesus died a single man. Paul encouraged his Corinthian readers to “stay unmarried, as I do.” For centuries of church history, monastic Christians understood celibacy as core to the life of holiness. And in the 21st century—when demographic shifts in the 21st century have upended the cultural script of marriage and family as a given—many young Christians are either choosing singleness as a testament of faith, or learning to live faithfully within it despite their desire to marry.
We’re all having meals by ourselves more often. But in the Christian life, food and community are inextricably intertwined.
For all their faults, our marriage rituals present family and promise-keeping as beautiful, desirable, and worth the effort.
Review
Anna Broadway’s survey of global singleness challenges a marriage status hierarchy within the church.
Chosen by Anna Meade Harris, author of ‘God’s Grace for Every Family: Biblical Encouragement for Single Parent Families and the Churches That Seek to Love Them Well.’
Viral Jesus
From musical theater to seminary classroom, a woman who calls herself “an unlikely theologian” is making space for single women, children, and others who aren’t always visible to the church.
Viral Jesus
Learning to keep God front and center prepared this ‘Bachelor’ alum for her true love story.
Paul’s advice to stay unmarried—like his advice for any circumstance—is about complete devotion to Christ.
The early church elevated females for their faith witness, not their fertility. We should do the same today.
But in Scripture, church history, and singles’ own accounts of their lives, it’s usually not a good thing, either.
Viral Jesus
TikTok professor Garrison Hayes opens our “Disrupting American gods” series with a brief history of race, racism, and identity politics.