What I have learned from the articles that I read from class stated that marriage provides the foundation and security for families, spouses, and children—especially children. The strength of our society is highly influenced and correlated by the strength of individual families. With that said, we can already see that despite efforts from various groups of peoples and government programs to strengthen these structures-- families, children, and marriages have been under attack. The strategies that are used seem small at first, maybe we don't really notice in the beginning-- or at least we pretend not to. As I read several articles about the departure of traditional marriage and the attempts and “success” to formalize other relationships, I felt several emotions. For me, the Supreme Court ruling in June 2015 brought a sense of upheaval, not to my own definition of marriage and family, but what will be perpetuated and accepted by fellow citizens in my country. What is played and portrayed in movies, television, and advertisements have sent certain types of messages that can and will change the views of how the rising generation will view the God-given sense of morality in society. What will be taught in public schools will be changed, how people exercise their freedom of religion can and will be under attack, and many other harmful effects that will surface in these uncharted waters of this changing era. We really don’t know or realize the ramifications that will occur yet because of these decisions in our society, but in time we will see.
"Marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God and that the family is central to the Creator’s plan for the eternal destiny of His children. . . .
The family is ordained of God. Marriage between man and woman is essential to His eternal plan. Children are entitled to birth within the bonds of matrimony, and to be reared by a father and a mother who honor marital vows with complete fidelity." (THE FAMILY: A Proclamation to the World, 1995).
No matter what else is written or said, this reaffirmation of values and commandments found in THE FAMILY Proclamation from God makes it perfectly clear the purpose of marriages and families and that God has established clear standards of morality for His children. While the simple statement from Proclamation says “Children are entitled to birth within the bonds of matrimony, and to be reared by a father and mother who honor marital vows with complete fidelity” (THE FAMILY, 1995), the research done in family studies shows this to be true. The ideal environment for raising children is in a home with a husband and wife who love and care for each other and their children. The complementary differences of male-female marriage is also important for a child’s development. From “The Divine Institution of Marriage” I read-- “The burden of social science evidence supports the idea that gender differentiated parenting is important for human development and that the contribution of fathers to child rearing is unique and irreplaceable. . . . The complementary of male and female parenting styles is striking and of enormous importance to a child’s overall development (David Popenoe, Life Without Father (New York: The Free Press, 1996), 146.
In closing, I would like to share a particular quote that stood out to me. It read:
“Marriage is more than a mere “word” or “piece of paper.” It is the oldest social institution in the world; it is literally a pre-legal, pre-state institution. Thus, merely calling the union of two men or two women a marriage does not make it so. In other words, marriage is not merely a positivist creation, but a fundamental human relationship deeply imbedded and essentially defined in human nature and history” (Wardle, L.D., 2008).
No comments:
Post a Comment