Musings on online dating

eHarmony is a different animal than Match or the other online matchmaking services. I've had mixed results in the past, and always vowed I'd never go back. The last time I did eHarmony, I ended up on a date with a woman who was a Mennonite, who had never eaten a mushroom or shrimp in her life, and wasn't willing to try. Deal breaker, on several fronts.

There's a high percentage of Christians on eHarmony, I think because it essentially has the James Dobson seal of approval. That's a good thing, since I'm looking for a believer, which is why I think I came back this time.

Here's the ironic thing, which I've alluded to before: though I'm looking for a Christian, I get really turned off when I see "Christian speak" in women's profiles.

What's up with that?

Here's an example of something that I read today, under a heading for the things someone's most thankful for: "I'm most thankful that Jesus is my personal savior and that I have an intimate relationship with Christ." She lists what I'm obviously most thankful for as well, but I don't feel compelled to put that down on my list. A lot of women list their Bible as one of the things they're most thankful for too. Turn off for me, honestly.

This ties in I think with my late night musings post from a few days ago. I detest Christian speak. Maybe too strongly, I don't know--perhaps the pendulum has swung too far the other way. But here's something to think about: is there anything at all in Scriptures that even remotely resembles the phrase "personal Lord and Savior?" I don't think Peter was going around talking about Jesus being his personal savior, and asking everyone he saw if they had asked Jesus into their heart yet. This is such a Baptistic view of the world, and I cringe when I read it.

I don't want to be married to a woman who has a view of Christianity that's primarily shaped by conventional evangelical thinking of the 20th century, who shops at Zondervan's all the time, who listens to Christian music exclusively, where every book she reads can be found in the "Christian Living" section of the bookstore. I can't view the world through that lens and don't want to share my life with someone who does. To my way of thinking, that's an insular and limiting view of the world. Perhaps however, I am creating a caricature in my mind of this person that's undesirable to me, and I'm really reacting to the image I have, which probably isn't really all that fair. Regardless, most of those matches get plunged.

It's probably awful that I think this way.