Courtship City Wide

Courtship is the culturally appropriate way to pursue a marriage.

Being culturally defined means that there are components that are not absolutes but rather applications and protocols that a group follows or adheres to.

my reluctance to have this meeting comes from a hesitation of trying to set group standards without group consensus.

Here are the questions we as a group need to resolve:

What should relationships between singles look like? How should women and men conduct their relationships? Singles should use the same propriety that married people use with members of the opposite sex they are not married to.

How do we create an exception to that norm so that a couple can investigate whether they would make a good partnership? What terminology do we give this and what are its parameters?

I think these definitions will have to be something we come to together in a brothers meeting to discuss the particulars.

What are the role of parents?

does the age of the couple matter?

are the families in the church

families in different churches?

one family in the church one not

non christian families

What is the role of the Church

expectations for boundaries of courting couples

hands off (it is good for a man not to touch a woman i cor 7)

how do we want the church to be involved in couples counseling and preparing young people for family life? Should we develop a way to prepare our young people for marriage and family? What would have been helpful for you to know before hand?

Advice for single men:

Favour is deceitful, and beauty is vain: But a woman that feareth the Lord, she shall be praised

Don’t start a courtship if you aren’t ready to get married.

Marriage is not the cure for lust problems. Master your self in this area before you marry.

Providing for a family is a serious burden but don’t let it be an undue one.

Familiarize yourself with the proverbs

Don’t marry someone you want to change

If you want to have children marry a woman who prioritizes and values motherhood

Advice for single women

courtship is not the time for submission, it is the time to ask questions and to find out what kind of man you are considering

how does he communicate?

how does he view leadership?

how does he resolve conflict?

how does he listen?

Don’t marry someone you want to change or wants to change you

Look for a man who makes the kingdom of God his priority

if you are committing to submitting to a man as unto christ, make sure that you see christ in him

How does he treat his mother and sisters and women in general?

Know the basic principles that you want in a man but leave the specifics open.