Memories of Dad!

Picture of Russell F. Harriger with daughter, Connie, and son, Clayton, about the year, 1940, on a rented farm in Monroe Township, Clarion County, Pennsylvania.

Russell F. Harriger was of German and Dutch ancestry. I have always been thankful that the last name was "Americanized" because, having seen the original, I know I probably would not be able to pronounce it and would certainly struggle to spell it.

My dad had those qualities that are too often sadly missing in today's world and the quality of life in our culture often reflects the reality of that in these very unsettled times.

From my earliest memory of dad I learned quickly that he was a hard worker at anything he ever did. His dream was to own his own farm and the hard work eventually paid off. The picture above was taken on the farm that he and my mother rented for a time. Then they entered into an agreement with a cousin of dad to live on the cousin's farm. This happened during the WW II years. The rented farm had no electricity. Our lights were gas with what was called a mantle attached over the fixture. They created a kind of eerie glow while ignited. We did not have a radio. There was no indoor plumbing. When we moved into the house on the cousin's farm we had electricity, a radio, and a hand pump at the sink for drawing water.

During this time my dad was working on the section gang of the New York Central Railroad. His dream was still to buy and own his own farm. Finally early in 1946 it happened -- my folks had managed to save enough money to make a down payment and get the farm. It was the one they originally had rented. The price paid for that farm was $4,600.00. We moved back into a house that now had electricity and a water pump system. But there was no bathroom. The bath was still taken in a galvanized tub and the little "outhouse" was where you went for "relief." Out of date Sears & Roebuck catalogs provided our toilet paper in abundance. Montgomery & Ward also assisted in maintaining this important inventory!

My dad was a man of honesty and deep conviction when it came to issues of right and wrong. He was definitely a "black and white" person -- there was no hazy gray area when it came to issues with him -- it was clearly right or clearly wrong and he would never compromise on his convictions.

He was also quite clear as to his stand on political issues. He believed that every citizen should vote and he did so in every election he could.

Dad was a man of faith and believed in prayer. He always said the prayer before we ate our meals. He and my mother were deeply involved in our church in a variety of ways. Dad did confess that he could never teach a Sunday School class, but when it came to manual work that needed done in some form around the church, he would be there and always ready to go to work.

He had a sense of humor and it was the kind that could be shared in mixed company without embarrassment. He had no time for the off color brand and was never amused when someone may dredge something up out of the gutter. He also never used foul language of any kind. In fact I never heard him use expressions that have their roots in profanity such as "dang," "darn," "gosh, "gee," "gee whiz," etc. His language was simple and you had no trouble understanding what he was talking about.

My dad dropped out of school in the sixth grade. And at that young age began working on his dad's farm as well as helping neighbors. He told me once of earning 50 cents a day -- a day that involved long hours. This rate of pay from an uncle involved plowing fields with a team of horses and walking behind a plow! If I recall correctly, he was 13 years of age when he did such work.

About the time I was born my father became a member of the school board for Monroe Township in spite of never having completed even grade school. He continued in that position for some time after I had graduated from high school. A major change took place during those years with the closure of the one room schools in Monroe Township and merger with the Clarion school district. A picture in my high school yearbook shows the school board for that year and my dad was one of the members of that board!

He was a disciplinarian and made clear to my sister and me what was expected of us in terms of behavior. Get out of line and we were punished. Sometimes I learned the hard way -- that when my dad had said how it was to be and I did not listen, I then paid a high price. But I never violated his word again in that area in which I had experienced his "judgment!"

To save money, he bought hair clippers and would cut my hair. He and a cousin would "trade haircuts" as they called it. Each would cut the other's hair on a regular basis. All this went rather well until the time came when the clippers got a bit worn and dull -- then instead of cutting all the hair, some didn't get cut and when he pulled the clippers away, those few hairs got pulled out by the roots! You can understand why I did not look forward to those times when my dad said it was time for a haircut. By that time he was going to a regular barber in Clarion.

His love for us was also demonstrated in many ways time after time. An early memory was when he and mom had gotten me a pair of rubber boots. I was about 4 years old at the time. It was in early spring of the year and our barnyard was really a quagmire. I had to try out the boots -- I waded into the barnyard a few steps and began to sink -- the more I tried to get a foot out, the other went deeper into the mud. In desperation, I cried out and my dad was near enough that he heard that frantic call for help. He came and lifted me out of that mud. What a relief! I have used this from time to time as an illustration as to how Jesus Christ came into this world to rescue us from the quagmire of sin, setting us free and making possible forgiveness and assurance of eternal life with Him forever.

Dad was just a few weeks past the age of 84 when he went to be with the Lord. We felt our loss was Heaven's gain and look forward to the moment when we shall be reunited in the presence of our Lord Jesus forever.

Thanks, dad, for the many ways you were a blessing and an inspiration to my sister and me over the years -- even though there were some of those times we did not recognize you to be the example and teacher you really were. It was only later in time that I recognized you were far more intelligent than I gave you credit for when I was in my rebel teen years.

And you, fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord. --- Ephesians 6:4

I Have Seen Over 7 Decades of Change -- A Lot of It Very Bad!

Clayton D. Harriger was born to Russell and Helen (Sedgwick) Harriger in a farmhouse in Monroe Township, Clarion County, Pennsylvania, USA on August 5, 1933

My frame was not hidden from You, when I was made in secret, and skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, the days fashioned for me, when as yet there were none of them. How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God! How great is the sum of them! --- Psalm 139:15-17

I celebrated my birthday on August 5 and was blessed with a great outpouring of well wishes on Facebook as well as receiving phone calls and greeting cards.

I was a Depression-era baby -- that is, I was born during the time the Great Depression had a tight grip on the United States. My parents were living on a rented farm. Life was a constant struggle for them. Eventually they were able to buy the farm at the end of WW II.

My early education took place in a one room country school in which one teacher took care of grades 1 through 8. After completing 8th grade we were bused to Clarion Jr and Senior High Schools in Clarion PA.

In school during those years we started our day with reading from the Scriptures, praying the Lord's Prayer, and pledging allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands. In the one room school we sang the first stanza of "America the Beautiful" before eating lunch each day.

The big social occasion of the week was Saturday night in Clarion. Families not only went to do some shopping -- they also went to visit with one another. Getting a parking spot on Main Street was a top priority. You ate fresh roasted peanuts from Maul's Dairy Store and sat in your car, observing the traffic as well as visiting with people who passed by.

Sunday was a quiet day with most families in the area going to church in the morning. After the noon meal there may be a trip to visit a neighbor or relative in the afternoon. Businesses in Clarion were completely shut down. The town was very, very quiet on Sunday afternoon in sharp contrast as to how it was the night before!

As I got older changes began to take place. Pressure mounted to permit Clarion's two movie theaters to show movies on Sunday and so in time it was done. Then came the pressure to allow retail businesses to be open on Sundays and so in time it happened. So at this point in time Sunday is no different than any other day of the week with focus being mainly on the expectation of fair weather so we can party and have lots of fun throughout the country!

Then came earth-shaking court decisions that made an impact on our republic that no person is capable of comprehending -- that is, the full consequences of such decisions have yet to be realized. The U. S. Supreme Court saw fit to rule that it is unlawful to have Bible reading and prayer in the public schools. This was considered a good thing and the country would be a much better nation because of it in years to come. "Religion" is a private matter, you know! And so, the question can be raised - is the nation healthier now ethically and morally, than it was at the time the practice of reading Bible and praying the Lord's prayer was in place?

And there was one of the most diabolical decisions ever made by a court anywhere in the history of the human race when certain black robed individuals got their pointy little heads together and decided that it is a "constitutional right" for a female to have her unborn child mutilated, murdered, and removed from her body! As I have stated in commentary on this elsewhere, we have yet to witness God's full response to this massive destruction of 52 million innocent victims since January of 1973!

Entertainment industries moved from what were considered G-rated programming for the entire family to increased display of vulgarity, violence, and immorality in very graphic fashion! And there is the very awkward question as to why our young often act very selfishly, immorally, violently and speak gutter language constantly. Monkey see, monkey do, you know!

Churches increasingly began to compromise the Biblical standards of ethics and morality, due in part by adopting positions that the Bible does not really mean what it says and that it is simply a human produced volume of material filled with contradictions and errors!

Government began to grow at the rate of a malignant tumor out of control. But not only was there unhealthy growth in government, but all the while it was growing it was also becoming more corrupt as time passed! At present time scandals involving government officials are common place and no longer are we shocked -- it is now the "norm" and we tend to accept such things as being normal!

These are but some of the changes I have witnessed in my lifetime. By God's grace in 1957 I received Jesus Christ as my Savior and Lord. A few months later He placed me in the ministry which began in June of 1959. Perhaps because of that I have been extremely sensitive to the changes that have been taking place over the last few decades -- changes that guarantee the nation in which I hold my citizenship is headed for disaster and cannot expect anything in the future but the outpouring of the wrath of a holy God in judgment!

But I look beyond that horrible prospect of devastation to the promised return of my personal Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ, the living Son of God. He is going to return to this sin drenched world and set it right side up, ruling it with true justice. That is why from time to time I say to people that there is good news for the future -- part of it consists of the fact that all government leaders and their associates will be thrown out of office because the King of kings and Lord of lords is now in charge. It will be a great day -- make sure you don't miss out on it!

And there will be changes taking place when Jesus takes control that we cannot begin to even imagine. One of the greatest will be no more conflicts of any kind with the implements of war being destroyed and material being used in the making of implements of peaceful activity. Even animals will no longer be in conflict, but will live in peace -- e.g. the lion will eat straw like the ox!

So there is a bright future to anticipate, if you look far enough ahead!

Then the seventh angel sounded: And there were loud voices in heaven, saying, "The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!" --- Revelation 11:15

Want to Fix the Country? Only One Place Where It Must Start!

Can They Reach a Deal? Bush presses lawmakers to move quickly on stalled economic bailout plan – stocks fall as bailout talks break down – WaMu seized, assets sold --- Internet headlines on September 26, 2008

O LORD, I know the way of man is not in himself; it is not in man who walks to direct his own steps. --- Jeremiah 10:23

As of this writing the first effort to reach a “deal” on the 700 billion dollar bailout of those institutions going under for the deadly third time has failed. The president assembled a host of leaders including the major party candidates for president in an attempt to get those billions rolling, but to no avail.

There was no end to the financial “arm chair quarterbacks” and their “expert” comments as to how it should be done as exhibited on cable news channels and sound bites on major network news programs.

So, since “arm chair quarterbacking” is in vogue at the present moment, how about adding one more – a Clarion County PA farm boy who lives out in the sticks – and who never served as a congressman, or a CEO or achieved the distinguished status of a bishop in a mainline denomination, or a district superintendent in the same, or even as a senior pastor of a church with a few thousand members!

Understand that this “formula” for fixing the country has not really been mentioned in all those discussions taking place among the powerful and wealthy leaders of our republic. Rest assured that this "formula" will deliberately be avoided even more so than exposure to the dreaded Bubonic Plague! Leaders in all fields of responsibility want absolutely nothing to do with the necessary action that has to be taken to restore this nation to what it needs to be and must be if it is going to survive!

But let’s mention it anyway – I do so in part in order to fulfill responsibility which I have in regard to the call Jesus Christ has given me and also that nobody will be able to say, “No one said anything about getting things set right with Almighty God.” As an aside, there are personal letters sent to the president, elected officials, media people and church leaders on an ongoing basis which focus on this issue.

In order for this nation to recover from the deadly *“graveyard spiral” in which it presently finds itself, both governing officials and church leaders will have to issue a loud and clear call that the entire nation will have to do something – this action must be top priority, even beyond the 700 billion dollars which has been the focus of attention for days.

*"graveyard spiral" - a term I learned from a friend who was a commercial pilot all his life and it applies to an aircraft spinning out of control with no recovery possible -- end result is a deadly crash!

A nationwide call to repentance from sin must be jointly issued by those who occupy positions of power, wealth and influential leadership. Citizens must respond and also personally pray for God to extend mercy and forgiveness.

Best example as well as words which can be repeated are found in Daniel 9 in Old Testament Scriptures:

Then I set my face toward the Lord God to make request by prayer and supplications, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes. And I prayed to the LORD my God, and made confession, and said, "O Lord, great and awesome God, who keeps His covenant and mercy with those who love Him, and with those who keep His commandments, we have sinned and committed iniquity, we have done wickedly and rebelled, even by departing from Your precepts and Your judgments. Neither have we heeded Your servants the prophets, who spoke in Your name to our kings and our princes, to our fathers and all the people of the land. O Lord, righteousness belongs to You, but to us shame of face, as it is this day; to the men of Judah, to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and all Israel, those near and those far off in all the countries to which You have driven them, because of the unfaithfulness which they have committed against You. O Lord, to us belongs shame of face, to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, because we have sinned against You. To the Lord our God belong mercy and forgiveness, though we have rebelled against Him. We have not obeyed the voice of the LORD our God, to walk in His laws, which He set before us by His servants the prophets. Yes, all Israel has transgressed Your law, and has departed so as not to obey Your voice; therefore the curse and the oath written in the Law of Moses the servant of God have been poured out on us, because we have sinned against Him. And He has confirmed His words, which He spoke against us and against our judges who judged us, by bringing upon us a great disaster; for under the whole heaven such never has been done as what has been done to Jerusalem. As it is written in the Law of Moses, all this disaster has come upon us; yet we have not made our prayer before the LORD our God, that we might turn from our iniquities and understand Your truth." --- Daniel 9:3-13

It’s about as plain as it could ever be stated, is it not? But there is a problem – first, too many don’t even want to consider what God wants, much less converse with Him about our national sin problems! Leadership too often is hung up on pride and that never permits one to be honest in admitting to ethical, moral and spiritual failure.

And we are unwilling to make a break with our pet sins – not just on the personal level, but just as critical, on the corporate level!

Here’s how it works – either we as a nation do confess and repent of our sins, or we continue to invite God’s chastising actions as we are now experiencing them and then His devastating judgments, if the chastising times do not produce the desired results!

Do you want the country “fixed?” Have you been talking to Almighty God about it? Or have you been deceived into thinking we humans can fix everything by ourselves, relying on our own abilities and resources?

Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man to whom the LORD does not impute iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile. When I kept silent, my bones grew old Through my groaning all the day long. For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me; my vitality was turned into the drought of summer. Selah. I acknowledged my sin to You, and my iniquity I have not hidden. I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the LORD," and You forgave the iniquity of my sin. Selah. For this cause everyone who is godly shall pray to You in a time when You may be found; surely in a flood of great waters they shall not come near him. You are my hiding place; You shall preserve me from trouble; You shall surround me with songs of deliverance. Selah. --- Psalm 32:1-7

Three Quarters of a Century of Changes!

The days of our lives are seventy years; And if by reason of strength they are eighty years, yet their boast is only labor and sorrow; for it is soon cut off, and we fly away. Who knows the power of Your anger? For as the fear of You, so is Your wrath. So teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom. --- Psalm 90:10-12

I just had to do it – first, at the little church I am presently serving on a part time basis and now today, August 5, 2008, which happens to be my 75th birthday.

I “officially” retired from the United Methodist ministry in 1996 after serving for 37 years. Then in 1999 I got a call from a member of the Gipsy Christian Church in Gipsy, PA. The small congregation was seeking a pastor and my name had been passed along to them. We talked and I agreed to work with them on a part time basis. The church is 27 miles from where I live in Belsano. Our “contract” is simple – they can tell me to hit the road any time they want to, and I can walk out the door and never look back any time I want to!

So I thought I would do a bit of remembering over the years God has granted me life on this planet. There are folks who have lived longer than I who have seen a lot of changes also, but there would be not really all that much difference in the changes witnessed.

First, the home environment thing -- I was born and raised on a farm. A lot of no’s in the setting such as no indoor plumbing or bathroom, no electricity and no radio. First car I remember was my dad’s 1928 Chevrolet coupe which had wooden spoke wheels and a bad valve in the engine which made a funny sound when it ran! As most rural homes at that time had, so we had the outdoor privy – no luxury of soft toilet tissue, but rather a Sears & Roebuck catalog or a Montgomery Ward’s catalog – however, our privy did offer a luxury option of using the pages of one or the other, depending on your preference! Over the years I experienced a great transformation in the home environment -- the kind of improvements I had only heard about as a kid.

Our lighting was by natural gas with a thing called a mantle over the outlet so that when the gas was burning the mantle took on a bright glow, but by no means matched the illumination of a 100 watt light bulb. My experience of electric lighting in the home along with a radio to which I could listen took place when I was about 7 years of age.

Second, the education thing -- I attended a one room country school for the first 7 years of my education experience – normally, it was an eight year time period, but I skipped one grade, which enabled me to graduate from high school at the age of 16. Teachers in those systems were excellent in their ability to maintain order and teach a lot of stuff to kids between ages 6 and 14. It was some of the best education I ever got in my entire life. I went on to high school, college and graduate school. But that one room country school provides the most cherished memories!

There was something also that went on in that country school which would cause the government people that are always concerned about our health and well-being to sound the sirens and put on their hazmat outfits at the speed of light!

It was quite common for my mother to fry an egg, smash it while the yoke was still soft and put it between 2 slices of bread for my lunch in addition to a few other items I had. That lunch sat at room temperature in the schoolhouse for about 4 ½ hours or more before we ate it. And then the water situation – 2 kids would take a water pail to a farmer’s spring house a short distance away and bring it back to the schoolhouse with some water in it, dump it in a crock that had a spigot on it, and we would take our cups off the shelf and get a drink from the crock. The crock and our cups were never washed or cleaned in any way for the 9 month term of school!

Question for those who are hyper-sensitive on sanitation and food temperature issues – how in the world did we ever survive those one room country schools?

Third, the Sunday activity thing – in those early years Sunday was the day of worship. All businesses in my home town of Clarion PA shut down. Families for the most part in the area where I grew up were found in church on Sunday and also attended Sunday School. Many parents had rather strict rules as to what was acceptable conduct and what wasn’t on the Lord’s Day! But then came the changes over time in which Sunday became a day of transacting business, following professional and college sporting events and pursuing pleasures of every conceivable kind. Today less than half of our 300 million population can find its way to a place of worship on Sunday mornings!

Major changes took place along the way as I grew in years – the 1950’s saw the ushering in of something called rock ‘n roll. Television and Hollywood produced entertainment that began to greatly erode over time in terms of moral and ethical standards.

Major court decisions transformed our culture in ways never imagined – the practice of praying and reading from the Bible in public schools was ruled unconstitutional. A few years later it was ruled by the Supreme Court that it is the constitutional “right” of a woman to have her unborn child brutally mutilated and murdered – a bonus in this is a guy in a white coat being given many bucks to do the deed and never be charged with a criminal act!

Moral and ethical changes have amounted to nothing more than witnessing a person who makes sure a bath is taken every day in order to maintain a state of cleanliness and then abandons that practice, plunging into the nearest cesspool and shouting, "Ah, this is the life -- I like it -- it's the best!"

Much, much more could be said about changes witnessed over three quarters of a century, but what has already been stated is enough to say that the United States in the past 75 years has undergone the kind of changes which amount to nothing less than the digging of a grave, and we stand by the grave side with one foot on a banana skin and the other on three dozen ice cubes!

But as I review the changes witnessed over the past decades with much alarm and a grieving spirit, I also take heart in knowing that the greatest change of all is yet to be and will take place at an hour which I know not – but take place, it most surely will because it has been promised by Almighty God.

The change will take place at the moment Jesus Christ personally returns to this world at some point in the future – here is how it is described by two persons:

We are bound to thank God always for you, brethren, as it is fitting, because your faith grows exceedingly, and the love of every one of you all abounds toward each other, so that we ourselves boast of you among the churches of God for your patience and faith in all your persecutions and tribulations that you endure, which is manifest evidence of the righteous judgment of God, that you may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you also suffer; since it is a righteous thing with God to repay with tribulation those who trouble you, and to give you who are troubled rest with us when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power, when He comes, in that Day, to be glorified in His saints and to be admired among all those who believe, because our testimony among you was believed. --- 2 Thessalonians 1:3-10

Then the seventh angel sounded: And there were loud voices in heaven, saying, "The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!" And the twenty-four elders who sat before God on their thrones fell on their faces and worshiped God, saying: "We give You thanks, O Lord God Almighty, the One who is and who was and who is to come, because You have taken Your great power and reigned. The nations were angry, and Your wrath has come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that You should reward Your servants the prophets and the saints, and those who fear Your name, small and great, and should destroy those who destroy the earth." --- Revelation 11:15-18

I rest my case!

55 Years of Honeymooning and Still Counting!

Clayton (age 19) and Jean (age 17) (Botzer) Harriger - June 13, 1953

Let your fountain be blessed, and rejoice with the wife of your youth. As a loving deer and a graceful doe, let her breasts satisfy you at all times; and always be enraptured with her love....... He who finds a wife finds a good thing, and obtains favor from the LORD. --- Proverbs 5:18, 19; 18:22

Yes, it's true -- as of today, Jean and I have been honeymooning for 55 years! No, it's not been a quick get-away to Hawaii or Acapulco or wherever the so-called "romantic" places are found that are associated with honeymoon travel packages. But our love for each other is such as I attempt to tell couples who want me to do their marriage ceremonies -- love for one another is somewhat like a rosebud -- not yet fully matured, but as time passes the rose breaks out into full bloom -- in marriage the rose continues to bloom and bloom and bloom (add many more blooms if you want)!

Fifty-five years ago today we violated the standard custom that the groom was not to see his bride before coming down the church aisle to become his wife. Because of a tight schedule between my leaving airman training school near Memphis TN and reporting to Cherry Point Marine Corps Air Station in NC, we had to pick up our marriage license on the day of our marriage at the court house in Kittanning PA -- both of us had to appear to get the license.

It was a hot day, but sunny. The wedding was scheduled for 8:00 PM in the evening mainly because the pastor was at the Methodist Annual Conference in Meadville PA, some miles away. He was 20 minutes late getting to the church -- a frantic pianist was just told to keep playing until he arrived.

Finally the ceremony got underway at Monroe Chapel Methodist Church midway between Clarion and Sligo PA on Route 68. And so a young couple who had been dating for 2 years finally became husband and wife. The rose was still in the budding stage!

We left for NC on Monday, June 15th. We got an apartment in New Bern which was about 20 miles from Cherry Point. Jean got a job at a movie theater close to our apartment. Those who were married and living off base did not have to stay on the base with one exception. I drew 60 days of guard duty in October of '53 and spent 3 days on base with 2 days off each cycle.

Even though we were not Christian at the time, God extended a host of mercies of which we were totally unaware -- we now refer to that as experiencing the prevenient grace of God. We were blessed with a son, Richard, nearly 2 years later at the base hospital.

Many, many stories could be told over that span of time as God in mercy brought us eventually to the place where we saw the need to receive Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord of our lives. Shortly after that came a clear and specific call to preach God's Word in pastoral ministry. Approximately 21 months after Jesus changed our lives, I was appointed to serve two Methodist Churches in New Castle PA.

Out of this marriage union have been born 5 children, 9 grandchildren and 2 great-grandchildren. The Lord willing, on July 19th I will perform the marriage ceremony of a grandson, Andy. That date will also be birthday #1 for our youngest grandchild, Owen. There is quite an age span among the grandchildren -- the oldest will be 28 this coming November and the youngest, Owen, as mentioned, will be 1 year old on July 19th.

It has made for adventure all the way. But the greatest has been facing each day with the firm assurance that we do not ever walk alone -- our Lord is present always to make a way. He has wonderfully blessed us over these many years, in the best of times as well as in those very trying times.

After honeymooning for 55 years, we can still say to each other, "The best is yet to be!"

I'm 100 per cent sold on marriage as God designed it for male and female -- don't try to expand on that -- Jesus didn't, did He?

And He answered and said to them, "Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning 'made them male and female,' and said, 'For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh'? So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate." --- Matthew 19:4-6