The death of Matthew Winkler, and the jury's finding his wife Mary guilty of voluntary manslaughter, and the judge's (apparently) lenient sentencing seems a gross miscarriage of justice to some. I see a different dynamic at work.

Believe it or not, not every American is sexually "sophisticated". This is to say that not every American has had her character sullied by exposure to porn and other uncleannesses.

Take a deep breath. I know that was a shock.

Mary Winkler is a member of the Church of Christ. This is a fellowship that rates VERY conservative on the continuum that is American Christendom. She is in fact a member of a very theologically conservative wing of that fellowship. Here are some core beliefs of that group:

• Marriage is for life.
• The only Scriptural (accepted-by-God) reason for divorce is the sexual unfaithfulness of the spouse.
• The husband is to love the wife as Christ loves the church.
• The wife is therefore to submit willingly to her husband.

The bad news is, the preacher's family must (apparently) multiply this fourfold. When there are Problems, often there is no-one to whom the beleaguered wife may turn. This is, after all, the Preacher's family, and surely they must be the Best of us!

To those of us who would consider ourselves to be Sexually Sophisticated (read: have read Playboy-at least- and have squinted real hard at the scrambled pr0n channels on cable) the Horror of platforms and a wig is laughable in the extreme. In a time of silicone-wrapped bedroom power tools, and artificial pudendae molded from the Stars of Pr0n themselves, such naivete and -dare I utter it- Innocence is hard to comprehend. Nonetheless, it still exists.

Isn't that cute.

I would be willing to bet that Mary was still a virgin on her wedding night.

To such innocence what would the ultimate message of wig-and-sexy-shoes be from Him who should love her as Christ loves the church? What would she perceive from her "godly" preacher swain?

You

Are

Not

Good

Enough.


This is NOT an issue of feminism Rampant. It is an issue of Love Sullied.

Surely then her actions are justified?

Errrrrmmmmmm, no. I would be willing to conjecture that she was behaving as programmed.
Hubby, her Vicar in Shining Armor, taught her the seamy side of marital love. Taught her (apparently) the art of violence.

She (apparently) was a good student.

This is NOT to say that lingerie is bad, or that sexual games are a bad thing (within the rubric of Love). It is to say that husbands, you should truly love your wives as Christ loved the church, and self-sacrificially gave Himself for the church.

It's a good way to keep from being killed with a shotgun.