The recent news that McKenzie Scott, the ex-wife of Amazon billionaire Jeff Bezos, is divorcing her second husband in two years should come as no surprise to anyone familiar with previous research on divorce, which confirms the disruptive effects it has on victims, particularly women and children. McKenzie appears to be the innocent party in her 25-year marriage to Jeff Bezos, the father of her four children when Jeff’s obsession with another woman became public. Indeed, Jeff Bezos announced the divorce in a tweet in January 2019, following the public revelation of his adulterous relationship with a married woman, Lauran Sanchez.
Though McKenzie received a large portion of Bezos’ billion (approximately USD37 billion) in divorce settlements, it pales in comparison to what she lost: a family trust built over 25 years, shattered; betrayal by the father of her four children; the security of a familiar life all gone up in smoke, and the feeling of having to start life almost all over again, and launch out in search of love when her beauty and youth have already been spent. Some may argue that having the option of dating other men is part of the excitement of being single again, but that is not the case. Those who claim this are incorrect. There is a special joy in having a trusted confidant who has accompanied you on your journey. McKenzie and Jeff built Amazon from the ground up, and what a journey it must have been, with so many shared memories spanning decades, so many shared adventures, so many dangers overcome together, and so many bullets dodged. All of this is gone.
Hence, divorce hurts women more than men because they age faster, are more vulnerable, and lose their fertility at a younger age. Despite variations, research confirms that a significant number of women lose their ability to bear children (menopause) between the ages of 47 and 54. A man, on the other hand, is very capable of bearing children even at the age of 70 and above; in fact, the world’s oldest new dad, who is from India, fathered a child at the age of 96, according to Livescience.com (https://www.livescience.com/24196-male-fertility-limit.html). Furthermore, divorce, according to Reynolds (2017), is harmful to children’s well-being; it is unjust to wives, who need their husbands’ protection rather than being dismissed when their good looks begin to deteriorate (Reynolds 2017). That is why, according to St. Thomas, divorce is unnatural because it places the woman on an unequal footing with the man who, after having enjoyed her youth, is able to cast her out when her youth is failing.
Furthermore, divorce is also wrong because it puts both couples on guard as every temporary union does and hence, both couples may not be able to give themselves completely to each other without reserves, but rather deliberately hold back, keeping something back in case the marriage fails. Hence, the Catholic Church insists that marriage is for life and that the bonds are irrevocable, and that it is not a union based on the satisfaction of the two adults’ passions, but rather, based on justice, which includes keeping promises made for better or for worse. “The promise, made when I am in love and because I am in love, to be true to the beloved as long as I live, commits one to be true even if I cease to be in love,” wrote C.S. Lewis.
Hence, if this is understood, there would be less emphasis on being in love, which has resulted in so much divorce and broken marriages, and when people realize that they are no longer in love. Jeff Bezos abandoned his wife of 25 years because he was no longer in love with her but with another woman, it demonstrates that human passions are fickle and nothing lasting can be built on them. “The Christian idea of marriage is based on Christ’s words that a man and wife are to be regarded as a single organism—for that is what the words “one flesh” mean,” writes C.S Lewis. Marriage is not for personal fulfillment, writes Seth Smith in his article “Marriage isn’t for you,: You marry to make someone else happy, not to make yourself happy. More importantly, you’re marrying for a family, not for yourself. Not just for the sake of the in-laws and all that nonsense, but also for the sake of your future children. in addition, C.S Lewis argues that there are several sound reasons to remain married even if love is gone: to provide a home for their children, to protect the woman (who has probably sacrificed or damaged her beauty by bearing children from being dropped whenever the man is tired of her.
In conclusion, we could argue that McKenzie’s second divorce, which occurred less than a year after her first, proves that her separation from Jeff, her husband of 25 years, was detrimental to her, as studies show it is to women due to the greater sense of loss and insecurity women experience after a divorce due to the earlier aging and loss of fertility that affects them compared to men.
This article was written by Bawo Olisaemka
Works Cited
C.S. Lewis. Reasons not to Divorce when Love is gone, 2013. Retrieved from https://authorschoice.org/2013/08/04/two-in-one-flesh/ Accessed 9th Jan 2023.
Eli MacKinnon. Is There an Age Limit to Male Fertility? 26th Jan 2022. Retrieved from https://www.livescience.com/24196-male-fertility-limit.html Accessed 11th Jan 2023.
Reynolds, Philip L. “St. Thomas Aquinas.” Christianity and Family Law: An Introduction, edited by John Witte, Jr and Gary S. Hauk, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2017, pp. 161–178. Law and Christianity.
Seth Smith. Marriage Isn’t For You By Seth Smith, 2013. Retrieved from https://authorschoice.org/2013/11/15/marriage-isnt-for-you-by-seth-smith/ Accessed 12 Jan 2023.
Authors-choice: Hope & Revival 