Northwoods Seelsorger

In the past cohabitation prior to marriage signaled poor chances for a successful marriage later.  According to the latest government research that trend seems no longer to hold.  The trend of living together continues to grow, with 60% of couples today choosing this option prior to marriage.  So does this mean it no longer matters whether one lives with their partner before marriage, or instead of marriage?  Not necessarily.  While some may be cheering about these latest findings, the research also revealed another piece of information that could give pause for such celebration.  According to an AP article by Mike Stobbe: "The study found those who were engaged and living together before the wedding were about as likely to have marriages that lasted 15 years as couples who hadn't lived together.  But what about the couples who were living together but weren't engaged?  The new study found marriage was less likely to survive to the 10- and 15-year...

After being involved with list serves and discussion boards for a while, I noticed that civility in this media is too often lacking.  Reminds me of what frequently happens to people behind the wheel of a car, protected in semi-anonymity behind tinted glass.  At any rate, I would like to commend a helpful article to you by Pr. Rich Shields on his blog "believe, teach, and confess."  The article is entitled "My Love-hate relationship with the Internet - Part 1."

After holding on to this book for a while, I finally starting reading it.  Today I finished it, reading in my typical fashion of picking it up, reading a few pages, carrying it in the car, reading a few pages, and so on.  You get the picture.  Now I can return it to its rightful owner, as this copy was lent to me. Reviewing Heaven Is For Real presents a few challenges, and at first I wasn't quite sure I wanted to tackle them.  For one thing, who am I to question what appears to be the sincere experiences of a small child?  Furthermore, I can hear the rebuttals of "You're reading this as a theologian, but Colton was only a little child.  He sees it differently, and more simply."  If you are not familiar with the book, I'll let you Google it and read reviews elsewhere that summarize the content.  Better yet, read the book for yourself, then critique it -and my reflections here.  True, this is not a researched and thorough theological treat...