Husband & Wife

Jake takes his oaths very seriously, not to mention his Bible... 😉

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Father Harding peered at Jake in his wedding dress, a disgusted look on his face. “You’re really serious about this?”

Jake could only nod. Word of the (re)marriage had spread like wildfire, and already half the town had turned up to see the commotion. The other half were probably busy writing angry letters to the local newspaper. Although he was determined to go through with what was right and proper, he couldn’t help but feel humiliated beyond words.

“Jake,” said Father Harding in a patient voice. “I’ve known you since you were a boy. You’re not the least bit feminine. You don’t even like shopping for clothes!”

Jake forced himself to meet Father Harding’s eyes. “I know, Father,” he said in his practiced alto. “But I made a promise when I got married. You should know, you married us. How did it go? In richer or poorer, in sickness or health, to have and hold, from this day forward until death do us part? Well, we’re both still alive.”

Father Harding sighed. “That oath doesn’t mean you need to follow Liz down this sinful path.”

Jake clenched his jaw. He was determined to be brave. “There is no Liz anymore, Father. There’s only Lucas, my soon-to-be-husband. True, I had no idea I was marrying a transgender man. But marriage is binding in the eyes of God. And since marriage is between a man and a woman, what choice did I have than to become a girl?”

Father Harding looked at Jake with a severe expression. “But do you want to be a wife? You know what that means, don’t you? Submission and obedience to your husband, who is God’s representative on earth.”

Jake pushed his auburn hair behind his ears. “I want to be with the...person...I fell in love with, and I want our marriage to abide by God’s laws.”

Father Harding sighed. “Well, then I suppose you’ve made the only possible choice. Divorce is also a sin, after all. And I must say, you make a gorgeous woman. Perhaps this was all in God’s plan, turning sin into grace. He does work in mysterious ways, after all.”