Someone emailed:
I understand that you reject the "any cause" ground for divorce, but do accept the ground of emotional neglect. Some of the leaders of our church see "emotional neglect" as being tantamount to "any cause" in today's climate of psychological analysis/argument and in a modern divorce court. Can you comment?
Reply: "Emotional neglect" is a very woolly phrase which can be interpreted too widely, so I agree that it can be unhelpful and misleading. It would be a hopeless phrase to use in legislation, but it does help to encapsulate an idea. Ex.21.10f refers starkly to sexual activity, and Paul reflects this in 1Cor.7.3-5, but I wanted to avoid the situation where one partner demands "sex" when they should be offering love. I also wanted a phrase which mirrored the phrase "material support".
But I agree that the phrase "emotional support" could be used by people who have 'fallen out of love' as an excuse to end a marriage, when really they should get counselling, or go on a holiday, or stop reading girlie mags. I made this clear in one of my emails about a girl who 'no longer loved' her husband.
So I agree that "emotional support" can be misleading, but I used this terms as a good middle ground between "sex" and "love". I'd welcome ideas for a replacement.See more at Defining Biblical grounds for divorce in Divorce & Remarriage in the Church
