This article argues for the need to de-stage our understanding of changes in faith and marriage. The use of stages suggests that faith and marriage develop in discrete, invariant, hierarchical, and universal steps towards completion. Linking specific ages to stages fosters communal fragmentation rather than unity. Stages often become pejorative labels of lesser than/greater than dimensions. Stage descriptions are generic rather than supportive of individual uniqueness. There are alternatives to stage concepts which can capture the essence of change more biblically and holistically.
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