Married at First Sight star Dave Flaherty admits he downplayed his religion during the Season 7 casting process and wishes he had better communicated the importance of his beliefs to the experts.
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"I really downplayed it through the interview process. It's something that is probably a little more important to me than I realized," Dave told host Jamie Otis on last week's Married at First Sight: Unfiltered broadcast.
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As previously shown on Married at First Sight's seventh season, Dave is a faith-filled Christian who seemed disappointed and disheartened when he discovered his wife at first sight, Amber Martorana, does not hold strong beliefs in a higher power.
In bonus footage that aired during last week's Married at First Sight: Unfiltered, Pastor Calvin Roberson recalled Dave identifying himself as a Christian during the casting process.
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But at the time of his initial interviews with the experts, Dave said he did not practice his religion, nor was it necessary for him to marry someone with the same faith or religious background.
"I think Amber is a little surprised you just made a recent move towards having a stronger faith," Calvin told Dave in the bonus footage.
"It wasn't something that I anticipated," Dave admitted to Calvin. "One challenge in this marriage would be that Amber is not religious."
"I don't think we disagree or have different views; it's just I don't accept Jesus Christ and follow the Bible," Amber said in the bonus footage.
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Calvin was then shown telling the couple they should focus on their similarities rather than their differences.
During Unfiltered, Dave told Jamie that what surprised him when getting to know Amber was the fact she didn't like or embrace religion at all.
"So that put up this red flag for me, like, 'Wow, we are really on different pages when it comes to this conversation.' So I thought it was something we really needed to work on," Dave explained.
"Amber, I think -- and I still haven't gotten to the bottom of it or know what it is -- but I think she's had some bad experiences. It's just this kind of tough subject for us."
Dave's Married at First Sight co-star, Bobby Dodd, then revealed his religious views and values align perfectly with those of his wife, Danielle Bergman.
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"We definitely want it to be an influence in our children's lives, but it's not something we wake up and do on Sundays," Bobby reasoned.
"Just to jump in, that's really more how I feel as well," Dave said.
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"I'm not going to be the guy who goes to church every Sunday. But I want it to be something that influences my life and my kids' lives, and when it seemed to be something Amber was so opposed to, I think that was what was really concerning to me."
Dr. Jessica Griffin then chimed in during Dave and Bobby's appearance on Married at First Sight: Unfiltered.
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"I don't think Dave recognized how truly important his faith was to him back then. We didn't see a stark difference when matching [Dave with Amber]. It didn't look that stark as it does while it's unfolding here," Jessica explained.
"I think with all of this, and in this marriage, we are going to have to work on things," Dave said. "We're going to have to talk about things and rely on the experts' advice and guidance."
Dave clarified, however, he had no hesitation or reservations about staying married to Amber in light of this subject.
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