Health and Child Care minister David Parirenyatwa (photo: M Chibaya).
Health and Child Care minister yesterday despite criticism stuck to his guns insisting condoms should be placed in Bibles and distributed in churches.
I think this is way too far, as Christians we do not expect this from you minister. No matter what if you are called to address a public or private gathering it is best to leave religious issues outside your domain. Others have done so and the consequences have been disastrous.
Shame to those who respected your earthly authority and stood by and helped you to laugh in that heretical joke which you shared.
In the Bible both the Old Testament and the New Testament adultery is condemned. Adultery in the Old Testament was understood as sexual relations between a married (or betrothed) woman and a man other than her husband. It was therefore a sin.
In the New Testament Jesus extended the definition of adultery to include sexual relations between a married man and a woman other than his wife.
Mark 10:11-12 says “And he saith unto them, ‘Whosoever shall put away his wife, and marry another, committeth adultery against her. And if a woman shall put away her husband, and be married to another she committeth adultery.”
Therefore, for Christians, adultery is the sin of a married man having sexual relations with anyone other than his wife or a married woman having sexual relations with anyone other than her husband.
Honourable minister the bible said do not take the word of God in vain. The bible is the word of God, why not in a person’s pocket or in toilets where they can be easily accessed. A bible is opened when you want to hear God speak, and then you find condoms.
The reason bibles are put in hotels is for people to be close to God. Who told u a bible is opened when people want to have sex. May God of Abraham, forgive you and make you repent.
People also wonder if romantic relationships outside of marriage are permissible as long as there is no actual sexual intercourse. However, in the Bible teachings, marriage is an exclusive romantic and sexual relationship between husband and wife.
Jesus said “You have heard that it was said, ‘Do not commit adultery.’ But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.’ (NIV, Matthew 5: 27-28)
And the apostle Paul wrote: But because there is so much sexual immorality, each man should have his own wife, and each woman should have her own husband. The husband should fulfill his wife’s sexual needs, and the wife should fulfill her husband’s needs.
“The wife gives authority over her body to her husband, and the husband gives authority over his body to his wife. Do not deprive each other of sexual relations, unless you both agree to refrain from sexual intimacy for a limited time so you can give yourselves more completely to prayer. Afterward, you should come together again so that Satan won’t be able to tempt you because of your lack of self-control.” (NLT, 1 Corinthians 7:2-5)
In practice, an “office romance” or other extramarital affair causes great emotional pain to the spouse whether sexual intercourse is involved or not. Also, sexual attraction clouds judgment and often leads to actual sexual relations, even when that was not the original intent.
There is no specific prohibition in the Bible against sex between an unmarried man and unmarried woman. However, “sexual immorality” is denounced in about 25 passages in the New Testament. The word translated as “sexual immorality” or “fornication” in English versions of the Bible is the Greek word pornenia, which means “illicit sexual intercourse.”
Jesus said this: “it is what comes out of a person that defiles. For it is from within, from human heart, that evil intentions come: fornication, theft, murder, adultery, avarice, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, folly. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.” (NRSV, Mark 7: 20-23).
The apostle Paul wrote these verses: “The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.” (NIV, Galatians 5:19-21)
The Bible does not provide a specific list of acts that constitute “sexual immorality,” but these verses, also written by Paul, seem to say that any sexual intercourse, except between husband and wife, would be wrong:
“Now to the unmarried and the widows I say: It is good for them to stay unmarried, as I am. But if they cannot control themselves, they should marry, for it is better to marry than to burn with passion.” (NIV, 1 Corinthians 7:8-9)
In a nutshell the minister is wrong let’s respect the Holy book. The Bible is the word of God.
The minister should apologize or retract his statement and should not joke with sacred things cause we believe the bible to be the word of God. You went too far Hon Minister.