Risks, Rewards, and Reality - One

First, lets deal with the reality. Historically speaking, men have been promiscuous and the vast majority of men in all of world history were indeed sexually coupled with multiple women over their lifetimes. From a secular perspective, promiscuity is very common in world history. If you are a modern day anthropologist, honestly assessing the data, the only conclusion to come to is the vast majority of men, but generally less women, will experience multiple sexual partners in their lifetime. From a anthropological perspective, the issue is settled, most cultures in most times have been polyamorous with a tendency towards multiple sexual partners. Every major civilization has had some level of prostitution and promiscuity. This isnt surprising to find, as the sexual experience gives physiological rewards to couples in relationships. Those rewards are of the bonding nature, but also of the familial potential (the true tradition, children). This duo of sexual pleasure and family rearing, to many groups of people, in many times and places, represent the greatest rewards that can be sought in this life. Many people pursue specifically one or the other, but they both represent deep satisfaction to our ingrained human psychology. By implying a moral necessity of monogamy in a clearly polyamorous human culture, we are laying a heavy burdon on individuals within that society who might be wired differently. Family sizes are shrinking, and people generally understand sex as primarily for pleasure, and secondarily for family building. By allowing what scripture allows, we open a way for the natural poly nature of humanity to think in terms of family building as well as sex for pleasure. Within the Christian worldview (as biblically taught in the original languages), there is indeed deep respect for human sexuality, and an especially high value on the sexuality of women. Lets assume that marriage is not the "certificate" but more naturally and actually, the "sexual coupling" that a man and woman experience in coming together. IF this is true, then indeed even biblically the answer is certain, under the guise of "serial-monogamy", the vast majority of people in world history are biblically speaking polygamous. Though a woman may only have 1 husband at a time, the man may have multiple wives at a time. This makes sense considering the patriarchal model that God designed. If most men will, in most contexts, make the decision to pursue multiple sexual partners in a lifetime in the various contexts that make that possible, should we not allow the opportunity for this to be done in a morally outstanding way that makes those men actually have to work for it, that is to say through the honorable commitment of marriage for lifetime. There is great psychological relief in the recognition that desiring this type of additional relationship in not inherently sinful.