Question:  Does the Bible teach that a girl can be forced to marry her rapist?

The question may seem to border on the bizarre, but it is not irrelevant.  Consider the case of Sherry Johnson of Florida who was married off at age 11, already a mom, and is now advocating for a minimum age for marriage to be set in the state.  A surprising number of states have no such law.  You can read about her case and her cause in a story by Nicholas Kristof in the NY Times.

Anna Parini – NY Times

As a Christian of many years and a pastor to boot, what I find most disconcerting about the story is that many such cases point to religious factors (Conservative Christian, Ultra-orthodox Jewish) for these underage ties.  Allow me to add my $0.02 to the discussion and voice my support for Sherry’s cause…