Marriage(s) Made in Heaven

BAGHDAD — “Fatima Ali was a 24-year-old divorcee with no high school diploma and no job. Shawket al-Rubae was a 34-year-old Shiite sheik with a pregnant wife who, he said, could not have sex with him. Rubae said Jan, 12 the he had decided to marry her again. This time, he said, he would marry her for a year, enough time for his wife to recover from childbirth.”

Sound funny? I thought so too, so I kept reading. I’ve often wondered what modern and contemporary acts would take place as an effect of this war that has been raging for years now…I have an answer. Ever heard of enjoyment marriages (mutaa)? Some may see it as a form of prostitution; others see it as a way to solve the problems of financially providing for widows and others in distress. In Baghdad, this old form of prostitution (in my opinion) has come back after Saddam Hussein’s control was relinquished. Using the two people above, here’s how it works. Rubae has a pregnant wife who he adores, but who is also pregnant and cannot provide for him sexually. Ali, as stated, is divorced and apparently has a slim chance of getting remarried- virgins are preferred over divorced women and widows. So Rubae and Ali have agreed to engage in a mutaa-they marry each other (temporarily) and Rubae takes care of Ali financially and any other way a husband would and Ali provides for him in a “wifely” manner.

“They say a mutaa marriage is not much different from a traditional marriage in which the husband pays the wife's family a dowry and provides for her financially.”

Why would this be seen as anything other than prostitution? I’m glad you asked. Under Muhammad, this mutaa was seen as necessary.

“Most Shiites believe that the prophet Muhammad encouraged the practice as a way to give widows an income.”

Wow! Now the article goes on to explain how people need this and how it helps the families involved, but my position (as a woman) is this is crazy and not religious. And apparently this has spread to college campuses where women are doing this for money and one couple has entered into a mutaa to spite their parents (they won’t allow a traditional marriage).

So my first question is this: Is this a form of prostitution? I believe it is and that it has a religious cover-up. Second question: Is this truly religion? From my standpoint, no. There’s a difference between something being religiously accepted and something being done and using religion to justify it. I believe this is one of those cases. So if this is something that’s happening as a result of “our” invasion, what’s next?

To read the article in it’s entirety, go to http://www.msnbc.com/id/16717237