Marriage A Mistake? (Quote of the Week)

"Nearly all marriages, even happy ones, are mistakes," J.R.R. Tolkien once wrote his son Michael, "in the sense that almost certainly (in a more perfect world, or even with a little more care in this very imperfect one) both partners might have found more suitable mates. But the real soul-mate is the one you are actually married to."

That is a profound statement. Agree? Disagree? How does this view harmonize with the sovereignty of God?

(The quote comes from an essay entitled, "Austen's Powers, " by Jennifer Ferrara, featured in Touchstone magazine, March 2006. I'm not sure of the Tolkien quote's origin.)