It's the month of June! And you know what that means: wedding bells will be ringing across our land. But we must temper that happy thought with the realization that statistics suggest that about half these marriages will end in divorce. And if you are of the opinion that Christian couples fare better in matrimony, think again. Their divorce rates are about the same as all other couples.

Perhaps this makes it a good time to introduce our Book of the Week: Toward Commitment: A Dialogue About Marriage, by Diane and John Rehm. But don't assume this is just another marriage manual with the usual platitudes about how two newlyweds can live happily ever after. Their book has an interesting twist to its approach. Read on.

Evidence indicates that if married couples are able to talk together, sharing their contrasting viewpoints and differences, and truly want to save their marriage, they have a far greater chance of achieving wedded bliss. And this is exactly what Diane and John set forth and demonstrate in this volume. Each of its twenty-seven short chapters is an exercise in dialogue. Here's how it works: in each chapter they take up a topic, say the problem of money or of anger, and one states his/her initial position, followed by the other. Then they have a dialogue in which they talk back and forth about their contrasting positions and attempt to find common ground for resolution. These many chapters concern themselves about some of the typical issues and problems that couples face: in-laws, money, parenting, vacations, religious beliefs, professional needs, the "third person," and others.

Diane and John begin their book with two introductory chapters in which they share what were their initial assumptions and expectations in entering marriage and what each found most attractive about the other. Diane was a young divorcee seeking greater warmth and personal intimacy after a cold first marriage, while John, who was somewhat older, had been building a successful career as a lawyer and was assumed by some of his friends likely to become an "old bachelor." Neither recognized the considerable differences between them, and their early years were marked by difficult periods of adjustment during which they gradually learned how to talk together and to find mutual understanding. This is not a "religious" approach to marriage in the narrow sense, but there is much here that Christian couples can find helpful as they work at building a successful union.

Apparently Diane and John found happy commitment in coming to know each other, for the book's cover notes that they have been married for forty-two years and were able to work together to produce this book. The result is a common-sense approach that just about any couple can find useful - even those happily married. Their dialogues are interesting interplays of relationships and feelings that most of us can relate to. It's waiting in the library for you!

Program of Note: The Nexsen Handbell Ringers from Boone (NC) United Methodist Church will present a program in our sanctuary on Thursday, June 9, at 7:00 p.m. We are pleased to be able to host this group as they begin their summer tour. They have traveled extensively throughout the United States, ringing solo concerts, participating in regional festivals, and leading handbell workshops. The concert is free. Bring your friends and family!

Music Participants for June 5: Sanctuary Choir. The Sanctuary Choir will sing through the month of June, then various soloists will sing through the end of July. The choir will resume in August.

Sunday's Music: Hymn-text writer Reginald Heber's brief life (1783-1826) was notable for his final three years, spent as a bishop of the Church of England serving in India. His hymns were written prior to that service but on the whole were not published until after his death. "Bread of the World," the sanctuary choir anthem, is a short, two- stanza hymn that simply and elegantly reminds us that through Christ's sacrifice, "our sins are dead." The musical setting is by Hal Hopson, whose contribution to church music is well known by our congregation, as he spent two weeks in residence here in 2007.

The choir introit, "Hallelujah, We Sing Your Praises," is another of the test hymns. It is an anonymous song that grew out of the South African freedom movement of the 1970s and '80s. In a time and place where hunger and injustice were common, it speaks with joy of the banquet to come, when all will gather around the table of Christ the Lord.