Pastor Dwight Buckner found himself in the middle of one of the biggest reality TV dramas after marrying a couple on Lifetime’s wildly popular reality experiment, “Married at First Sight.” When the groom, who was a personal friend, turned up with an ex pregnant during his marriage on the show, Buckner was questioned about his commitment to the cloth or remaining loyal to the groom.
Although Buckner obviously was fond of the groom, he said his responsibility to his calling is higher than his responsibility to any man, and he encouraged the bride to take care of herself. The example on “Married at First Sight” was extreme, but Buckner says he counsels couples every day in his home practice.
During a visit to rolling out‘s relationship show, “Reality Check,” the pastor was asked a few questions about celebrity relationships and finding love.
Besides the show you were on, we see relationships as the focal point of pop culture conversation. Recently hip-hop sweetheart Saweetie posted about being hurt by her ex-boyfriend Quavo‘s cheating ways. What is your perspective about cheating and her addressing it on social media?
My advice is always keep your business off of social media. When you post emotionally, you are sharing your personal business with people that don’t really care about your life. This is entertainment for them, so my advice is not to share your breakups on social media. Sharing publicly also presents a problem if you and your significant another attempt to reconcile later. Now you have people commenting on your business while you are trying to heal and move forward.
As a pastor, what is your advice to people who, like singles on “Married at First Sight,” are hoping to find love and get married?
One of the worst things you can do is date someone when you are insecure. When you do this you give the other person license to manipulate you. It’s important to know who you are and love who you are before you get into a relationship. I tell people to date themselves, treat themselves well before you get into a relationship. This will set the tone for how the next person that comes in your life treats you.
