Humility is something I rarely feel. I feel it in church; I feel it in the presence of the less fortunate. I feel it while surfing Christian dating sites so, in a sense, my being humbled is perfectly logical.
I didn’t expect this feeling. I expected more of the same: faint distaste, disbelief, disappointment, yuckiness. The men are so palpably lonely.
i just wanted to be friends with a beautiful woman,someone to talk to.
They’re from all over: Iran, Bermuda, Auckland, India, Canada. (Incidentally, Canada has the cutest Christian guys online. Kudos to our northern neighbors!!) I suppose lonely knows no geographical boundary. There has been damage here; they all mention in some way wanting a woman who ‘knows how to love a man’; a woman who is honest; a woman who knows what it’s like to love honestly. Somewhere, there are women who left these men.
i would like to meet someone who is kind,someone who has a good sense of humor,someone who will treat a man the way he is suppose to be treated
And they’re taking care of children. This is what’s surprising to me: the number of divorces I’m seeing. I remember reading a statistic that says the Christian community has a divorce rate of 53%. That’s slightly higher than secular marriages.
Most have blank profiles, as if their desire is enough. And the desire pours from them like water bursting from a dam.
Hello, I would like to meet someone who is truly Godly and Faithful! You must also be athletic, slender, attractive, intelligent, fun, and be emotionally/mentally healthy! Do you like to travel? I want someone who will enjoy going to Paris, Rome or skiing! You need to be someone who takes care of themselves physically and spiritually! You needs to share similar Religious beliefs. Evangelical Christian who likes Praise & Worship Music! You have to love Kids! It would be nice if you have an interest in politics as I am very involved at times! You must believe in marriage for life and in giving and receiving Unconditional Love. Is there any women out there who still believe that intercourse is for after your wedding night? You must have good communications skills! Are you someone who loves to share their heart and just needs someone who loves to listen and open up their heart as well? I am not shy but if this is you drop me a note as perhaps I may never run across your profile? God bless!
It was so sad it almost put me off dating entirely – almost but not entirely. There is something humbling to look at the face of longing. These men are yearning for connection; they won’t find it from me but there’s someone out there who wants to live in their small towns, dream of Paris, Rome and go to bible study together. Their desire for human connection transforms these men from icky fundamentalist stereotype into …something else. Nothing grand or epic but at least more than a stereotype.
I’m not saying these men don’t need help; jeebus, do they need help. They need haircuts, teeth, lessons in romance and writing tips. But anything that moves me from making people into an invisible ‘type’ humbles me just a little.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
2 comments:
I'm interested in your reaction because mine was so entirely the opposite - I guess because the need strikes me not as the need for companionship per se, but of a particular preconceived notion of companionship - they need to receive exactly what they want, from someone who is physically and emotionally flawless. I mean, the laundry list of 'athletic, slender, attractive, intelligent, fun, emotionally/mentally healthy'? Please. They want to be with someone who 'believes in Unconditional Love' but they want a partner so flawless that they never have to actually exercise unconditional love.
yes. i noticed that, too. i was going to write about it but i was too tired. (plus i was trying to be nice...)
so thanks for bringing it up now!
you're so right. profile upon profile emphasized the christian barbie type. there is a template of womanhood floating out there that is so untenable it's not really surprising these men are alone. again, it goes back to this weird happy shiny jesus mask they're all wearing.
happy shiny jesus man doesn't want a regular woman; he wants what he 'deserves' as a man of God.
Post a Comment