The Real Reason Jessa Duggar Ran From the Church On Her Wedding Day
We’ve been keeping up with the Duggar family for years — and while their way of life isn’t new to reality TV-goers, we’re still just as interested as ever to see what they’re up to. Thanks to Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar, fans got a glimpse into their ultra-conservative way of life with their 19 children on 19 Kids and Counting. Now, many of the Duggar kids are all grown up and marrying off to start families of their own — and 26-year-old Jessa Duggar is one of them.
Fans love Jessa because she seems slightly different than the rest of her siblings, and we all tuned in to watch her wedding to Ben Seewald. Weirdly enough, the two ran out of the church midway through their marriage ceremony. Here’s why.
Jessa had to follow some seriously strict dating rules
Aside from their gigantic family, we also know the Duggars best for their ultra-strict dating rules. While many young people in their teens and early 20s treat dating as a fun venture rather than a lifelong commitment the Duggars choose to “court” — that is, date with the purpose of marriage. And TLC reminds us Jim Bob has to approve of every courtship before it can occur. There are even times when Jim Bob picks suitable husbands out for his daughters based on their qualities.
Once a Duggar enters a courtship, there are also a series of rules that should be adhered to here as well. All dates need to be chaperoned by either a sibling or a parent, and Jim Bob and Michelle also have the ability to see all text messages that happen between the two lovebirds. Not only that, but full frontal hugs are not allowed, as this may stir sinful emotions. And when it comes to kissing, that’s an absolute no-go until marriage, too. Like her siblings, Jessa followed all of these rules when she entered her courtship with Ben Seewald.
She ran away with husband Ben for this odd reason
While the Duggars are committed to keeping their relationships as PG as possible prior to their wedding day, there’s no doubt they’re still looking forward to kissing their spouses. And while many of the family members will willingly kiss their spouse in front of the whole wedding crowd on their big day, such was not the case for Jessa and Ben. As soon as they were pronounced husband and wife, they raced out of the church to go have their first kiss in private.
Jessa remarked on the infamous moment afterward to TLC. “Our first kiss was nice, slow, and romantic,” she said. And Ben added, “It’s better than if, you know, doing it up there on the stage.” Jessa also commented that though fans didn’t get to see their first kiss, she was sure there would be a lot more kissing in their future.
Her marriage seems to be going strong today
Jessa and Ben married back in 2014, and today, they’re seemingly still going strong. They have two sons and Jessa is currently happily pregnant with her third. If she’s anything like Michelle, it’s possible we should be anticipating plenty of additional Seewald offspring as the years go on.
While many fans find it strange that Jessa and Ben waited until their wedding day to run off and kiss, the Duggar has her own secrets for keeping her marriage as strong as possible. She told Us Weekly that you should “never stop showing gratitude to your spouse for all the things they do to help out.” Jessa also mentioned that she and Ben have a standing date night to ensure no matter what chaos is going on, they can still have time alone together. And when she needs to unwind by herself, she also willingly does that so she can return to her husband and kids and be the best mom and wife possible.
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