Key Points

• Many marriages end in divorce because of infidelity and lack of commitment.
• The conventional marriage narrative of passion, love, and fidelity needs to be flipped, with fidelity first.
• Husbands will do well to shed outdated patriarchal values and live in the new narrative.

Thirty-five years ago, before my wife and I married, a friend excitedly shared a newlywed blessing: “May your passion turn to love and your love turn to fidelity.” “What a beautiful sentiment!” she gushed. But something felt off to me. Passion first, love second, and then fidelity? It’s the conventional narrative that fades over time. Proof? The two leading causes of divorce worldwide are infidelity and lack of commitment. What if we flipped the script?