One of the reasons dating is often difficult, is that by dating, you are inviting a person into your life with the intent of developing a relationship where this person will influence you and the choices in life you make. This can be a good thing, it can also be a bad thing.

This can be a great thing if you are in a good relationship. In this situation your partner will use their influence to help you be the best person you can. It can be a bad situation though in a toxic relationship. In these situations, your partner can use their influence to manipulate you into behaviours that satisfy their insecurities, guilt or own ambitions.

Culture and religion can play a big part in this, especially if your date has strong beliefs or tendencies along either of these lines. The reason why culture and religion can play a big part in this is because the rules of both tend to be strict (to varying degrees) with little or no room for compromise.

The main conflict this has with dating, is with partners who have not been brought up in the same culture or religion. Dating and relationships require understanding and compromise. Religions and culture tend not to, inasmuch as living your life by their set of rules is concerned, allow room for compromise.

When I point this out, don’t take it the wrong way. I’m not saying religion and culture are good or bad. I’m not saying religious or cultural people are right or wrong for you. All I am saying is that rigid beliefs and ideals can impact the development of a relationship and you should be aware of it.

You may be Asian and eastern culture may be very important to you. Dating someone else who places similar importance on such traditions can promote harmony in your relationship and assist with your personal growth. This is due to your synchronised life views.

If you have not lived your life within an Asian culture and have little interest in it, then dating someone who was very strong in this regard could cause problems. It could be difficult to understand some of the values this person shared with you and some of their opinions about the thing you do. A successful relationship in this regard will take lots of compromise and understanding.

Similarly with religion, a devout person of Christian or Jewish faith could be a much better person having a partner of similar faith, helping and supporting them through the matters of conscience particular to those religions. Similar beliefs in matters of sexuality also help in setting boundaries in the early stages of relationships in these cases. This is why religious dating sites also exist.

Matters of the heart rarely work out exactly as we expect though, so often inter-religion relationships occur. To be successful, tremendous understanding is required from both parties in the relationship. Discord often arises when the non-religious partner acts in a manner that, while socially acceptable, may not be within the strictures of the religious partner’s religion. When this happens, for the relationship to be successful, compromise is required from both sides.

With inter-cultural dating there is no perfect way to navigate the potential challenges that will come up from time to time. With inter-religion dating there is no perfect way to navigate the potential challenges that will come up from time to time. Lets be honest, with dating generally there is no perfect way to navigate the potential challenges that will come up from time to time. This article was never about saying what is right or wrong, it was only ever written to raise some points to think about. So if you find yourself dating someone from a different culture or religion, spend some time learning about where they came from. It will promote understanding, compromise and harmony in your relationship.