The parliament of Uganda has invited several Christian stakeholders to give their views on Christian marriage. Among the people who have given their views include Pastor Sempa and Pastor Male. Pastor Sempa was advocating for a legal provision for both monogamous and polygamous Christian marriage citing the fact that when people die, sometimes the truth surfaces that they had more than one wife and there is no legal provision to accommodate these people as wives.
On the other hand, Pastor Male advocated for polygamy citing biblical figures such as Abraham, Jacob, and David among several others who had more than one wife. During a similar hearing Pastor Sserwada was invited, to share his views on the matter. It was during this meeting that one of the council members asked a very important question; In law, you can go to the Attorney general to help out with constitutional interpretation, who is the chief interpreter of the Bible? Who do you go to to determine that the interpretation is right?
How the Bible Ought To Be Interpreted in the Christian Faith
The foundation of Biblical interpretation is not simply a matter of scripture or finding something written in the bible and using it to validate whatever someone sees fit. Biblical interpretation in the Christian faith is based on the values of Jesus Christ. There is no Christianity without Jesus and therefore anything interpreted outside his value system is considered Unchristian regardless of having a scriptural basis.
It is for this reason that scriptures such as Luke 24:44 are important. They quote from the law of Moses, the Psalms and the Prophets; the very books that make up what is called the Jewish bible (Tanak) but in light of Jesus the Messiah. Anyone can quote from these books to justify their view but as long as the view is not putting Jesus Christ or Jesus the savior (Jesus the Messiah) on the fore front; it is Unchristian regardless of being scriptural.
Understanding The Teachings Of Jesus
In order to understand anything; you have to ask yourself, what problem is being solved in this whole story? The problem at hand is sin but sin is not merely bad behavior. It is defining what is right or wrong by human standard instead of God’s standard. If God says Adultery is bad, man can still argue that there are instances where adultery is good and for that reason, Man can justify going against God’s adultery standard.
No man wants to be a Villain unless they have a mental problem. In one way or the other, everyone is attempting to define what is right in their own eyes and standing by it. Now Jesus is not a teacher of right and wrong. He is a person that calls us back to accepting that God is right (good) even if it means us dying when we have not done anything wrong. He comes and suffers the death of the cross simply because God led him there. He had not done anything wrong but he surrendered his view of what was right in his own eyes and took on what God viewed as right.
On top of not knowing what is right sometimes, the other sickness of man is failure to go ahead to do what is right even when they acknowledge that it is good. It is from that background that John the Baptist says this is the lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world. (John 1:29). The sin of the world is failure to agree that God is good. The story goes back to Genesis 1 where it is only God that looks at things and labels them Good. But later on in the same story, we see another entity looking at something and declaring it Good. That was Eve, contrary to what God had declared bad, Eve with the help of the serpent looked at it and said it was Good. This is the ultimate problem of Man.
Jesus promises to take away this rebellion if we accept that he is the savior. The one that takes away our sin. The story is not fully complete since the redemption journey is still on going. But what we know is that Jesus has power to make us new humans. The kind of humans who can agree with God about what is good. The wages of bad decisions is death but Jesus has created a way out of that death if we surrender to him. It is the journey of continuous surrender so that there is more of him that agrees with God instead of more of us who disagree that God is good.
Christian Marriage: Monogamy or Polygamy?
From what I shared above, it is evident that whoever stands for polygamy isn’t Christian because Jesus was clear about his stand when he was discussing divorce in Matthew 19. He said that from the beginning, God had intended them to be one wife, and one husband but because of the hardness of heart, Moses gave them the laws that could help reduce the damage caused by their hard heartedness. God is against polygamy but that does not mean that he does not deal with people who are polygamous. The problem of sin as earlier stated is clear, man tries to define what is right in his own eyes apart from God.
Polygamy Legislation In The Christian Faith
The Ideal in the Christian faith is monogamy. But like Paul tells Timothy about the law (1 Timothy 1:8-10), the purpose of the law is partly to reveal what is wrong by naming it. It is also to hold people who do these things accountable. Paul tells Timothy that the goal of the Christian instruction is to bring people to a place of love out of a pure heart, people having a pure conscience and being sincere in their faith. (1 Timothy 1:5)
Though there should be a law to address polygamy, it should not labelled Christian because such behavior is outside the ideal Christian faith. Paul tells the Corinthians that whoever practices sexual immorality cannot inherit the Kingdom that Jesus is offering. (1 Corinthian 6:9-11). Polygamy perfectly fits adultery. You cannot be polygamous without first being adulterous and as long as you are living in that line, you cannot inherit the Kingdom of God. Unfortunately, the temptation is to define what is right in our own eyes but that will never make it right in the eyes of God.
Conclusion
As long as there are believers who have not matured to a place of inheriting the Kingdom, there is need for a law to guide on how to go about polygamous situations because they are inevitable. There should be a solution on how someone returns to monogamy and how to proceed in case someone chooses polygamy.
The best example in what should guide this law is what Moses speaks about in Deuteronomy regarding a man that chooses to marry a woman whose Father he has killed!(Deut 21:10…) Logically you cannot marry a person after killing their parents but in case you are too hard hearted, Moses guided accordingly. Moses’ guidance does not mean that he condones marrying a woman whose parents you have killed in war. But on top of him not supporting it, he actually gave guidance on how to go about it. It is also why the same Moses who tells the king not to multiply wives goes ahead in Exodus to teach people on how to treat the second wife! (Exodus 21:10)
In the same way, there should be provision for hard hearted Christians in regard to polygamy. Well as the Christian law regarding marriage should provide punishments for adultery and polygamous situations; there should be another provision to remedy the situation. Things like what happens when a woman finds out that the man has another wife and family. These issues should not be overlooked in the name of there is no polygamy in the Christian faith.
Someone might still argue, where in the bible am I told to have one wife yet I see several examples of people with more than one wife. Deut 17:17; a King shall not multiply wives. Revelation 1:6 says that Jesus has made us Kings and priests unto God. Unless you wish to relegate yourself from Kingship and priesthood which also means denying what Jesus has done; you cannot escape the demand of simply having one wife as per Jesus’ standard. You are free to multiply wives as long as you refuse to be a king and priest.
I will close with what Peter says; 1 Peter 2:9. ESV But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
1 Peter 1:15-16 American Standard Version (ASV)but like as he who called you is holy, be ye yourselves also holy in all manner of living; because it is written, Ye shall be holy; for I am holy.
Are you holy when you are shared by more than one person? Selah
Wow. This is a very profound exposition.
Thank you for your comment
As a committed Christian, I believe that marriage is a sacred covenant ordained by God, not just a legal contract. Any law concerning marriage should uphold biblical values—honoring the sanctity of marriage, promoting faithfulness, and protecting the family unit as God designed. While legal frameworks may seek to address societal concerns, they should not contradict God’s Word. As Christians, we must stand firm in defending marriage as a lifelong commitment between a man and a woman, as instituted in Genesis 2:24. At the same time, we should engage in discussions with wisdom and love, ensuring that any legal reforms do not erode the moral fabric of society.