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If you’re looking to date someone of a different faith to yourself, the most important things to remember are that it requires open-mindedness, mutual respect and often a level of compromise. However it can be an enriching experience as you learn about another person’s beliefs and how it affects their life.
When going on a date with someone of a different faith, it’s likely that you’ll have many other shared interests that brought you together in the first place. In the initial stages of dating you should focus on talking about these things on your dates, in order to get to know the other person and see whether you click with them. Our advice is to avoid talking about ‘big topics’ such as religion too early on, and to get to know the other person’s interests and hobbies outside of religion initially.
Once you’ve known the person you’re dating for a few weeks, choose an appropriate time to discuss the subject of faith. You could start by asking your date what their faith means to them, and what role it plays in their life. The most important thing is to be understanding and respectful, and open-minded to their views, which may well differ to yours. The aim is to gain a better understanding of your date’s beliefs (and them of yours) in order to develop mutual respect. The golden rule is to not try to push your beliefs onto the other person!
If things develop, and you enter a relationship with someone of a different faith, you can discuss the role that your respective faiths will play in your life together. If the relationship is serious, it is a good idea to find an appropriate time to discuss your partner’s attitudes to important topics such as marriage and children, and to establish how this may affect your lives in future.
Ultimately, dating someone of a different faith is a very personal decision and success in a relationship will be dependent on much more than just whether you can be together with different beliefs. So long as there is respect, openness and understanding, there’s nothing to stop you dating someone of a different faith.
Head back to our Christian dating page for more articles like this one.
