New Preacher At Church Says Divorced People Cannot Be Members, Those Already Divorced Will Be Removed
On today’s episode of Christian program “The 700 Club,” during the “Bring It On” segment, Pat Robertson took a viewer question from someone who said they were attending a church (or who used to attend a church) that got a new preacher.
The new preacher informed the church members and guests that divorced people would no longer be permitted to be members, and that anyone currently divorced in the church would be removed (kicked out).
Usually, the folks at The 700 Club will upload the “Bring It On” segment to their official You Tube channel (link to their You Tube page) and their 700 Club site (700 Club site, Bring It On) not too long after each new episode airs, but I so far have not seen this particular video uploaded yet.
Edit. They have added the video to their site. I have linked to the video at the bottom of this post, so you can watch and listen to it for yourself.
Pat Robertson usually gives completely bonkers or insensitive advice, but so far as I can recall his advice to this viewer, he was right on the money with his response to this question.
Robertson told the viewer that this church or preacher was way too unreasonable and should not be limiting divorced people, and he pointed out that the Bible does permit divorce.
If you have read my blog before, you should know by now that I’m in my 40s, so I have never been married.
Therefore, I have never been divorced. So I don’t personally have a pony in this race, but I remain shocked and put off by how terribly so many churches treat the divorced.
Part of me would still like to marry some day but seeing how terribly churches treat divorced people and women trapped in abusive marriage makes me recoil in horror at marriage, especially to another Christian.
What if I do marry, and my husband is a jerk (ie, abuser or serial cheater), and I go to a church for help, they would just abandon me. I already know that churches give bum advice to abused women.
Actually, I know better now. If I do ever marry, and my husband is a jerk, I would know to contact a secular domestic violence shelter, call the police on him, and/or just leave and get my own place.
I know that most churches utterly fail women who come to them for help dealing with an abusive husband. They always tell the wife to go back and “submit more” to the husband and just “pray about it” and the Lord will change the guy – but this never pans out.
But truly, there is a church out there whose pastor told the members that divorced people are not permitted or welcomed at his church. He is going to kick out any divorced people in his congregation.
I would not want to belong to such as church to start with, but I wonder… what if you were in fact divorced, were new at the church, and nobody knew your background?
You could always just lie and say, ‘Nope, I have never been married,’ if they ask you about your marital status.
Lying may be listed as a sin in the Bible, but with churches and pastors who are THIS obnoxious, I would feel totally vindicated lying to them if I were divorced.
How are they going to know? Are these churches going to force you to give them your social security number, hire a private detective to go through your personal history, and would they run background checks on you?
I can see how church discipline is needed in some cases, but something like barring divorced people altogether is pretty legalistic and awful.
I do think one reason of many people are leaving churches is precisely this kind of legalistic nonsense.
Edit. The video has been added to the 700 Club web site. You can view it here (I believe the question about divorce is the second or third question on the video, after the question about Life Insurance):
(Link): Bring It On-Line: Life Insurance (also: divorce question)
And, on You Tube (Link):
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Related Posts:
(Link): Stupid Things Naive Christians Say (About Adultery, Divorce) from Divorce Minister Blog
(Link): Divorce. Unpardonable sin? (from CWO) / How Churches Fail the Divorced (article)
(Link): Pat Robertson Excuses Female Adultery – hey, we are all “sexual beings”
(Link): Did Jesus Forbid All Divorce? from AR site
(Link): America’s Exodus from Marriage (report from 2013)
(Link): The Bigger the Age Gap The Shorter The Marriage / Divorce Rates Predicted By Age Differences
(Link): Man Divorces Wife Over Her Large Sexual Appetite
(Link): ‘Chained wives,’ refused Jewish divorces by their husbands, take to social media
(Link): Married Man (who is 75 years old) Wants To Know If He Should Divorce Angry, Cheapskate, Bipolar Wife
(Link): Divorce Rates in America Decreasing But Divorce Rates on Increase Among Southern Baptists
(Link): Husband’s Money Mismanagement Gets Couple Evicted Wife Wants A Divorce
Christian Pundit 
I empathize with your agnostic considerations because I’ve been there too. That said, I’ve gotten over that hump when I took control over my own spiritual life…not easy to do but it can be done and done successfully. I do agree, a woman hitting 40 is a REAL woman and much more desirable than some fluff in her 20’s or 30’s! Women 40+ are good thinkers, have a firm sense of self….and honestly, are more fun. 🙂
I’m glad to hear of Robertson giving reasonable feedback to the person asking the question. I’m praying for that church to either change preachers or for the preacher to change his ways.