Monday, March 25, 2013

Positive Attributes of Becoming Man and Wife



Prince William and Kate Middleton as man and wife


This is the third part of a three part series on marriage. How important this institution is to our society. There are many positive attributes of becoming man and wife which reminds me of a song I heard as a youth. It’s called There is Love or Wedding Song by Paul Stookey, who was part of the famous Peter, Paul and Mary trio. I always felt shivers down my back whenever I heard this song.



There is Love
Paul Stookey

He is now to be among you at the calling of your hearts
Rest assured this troubadour is acting on His part.
The union of your spirits, here, has caused Him to remain
For whenever two or more of you are gathered in His name
There is Love,
there is Love.

Well a man shall leave his mother and a woman leaves her home
They shall travel on to where the two shall be as one.
As it was in the beginning is now and til the end
Woman draws her life from man and gives it back again.
And there is Love,
there is Love.

Well then what's to be the reason for becoming man and wife?
Is it love that brings you here or love that brings you life?
For if loving is the answer, then who's the giving for?
Do you believe in something that you've never seen before?
Oh there is Love,
there is Love.

Oh the marriage of your spirits here has caused Him to remain
For whenever two or more of you are gathered in His name
There is Love,
There is Love.

There are many positive attributes of becoming man and wife.  First, there is a closeness which married couples feel towards each other that cannot be felt with anyone else.  Second, married couples can create children which are a part of each of them and third, for the most part there is a peace and contentment in life.

Closeness: If one has never been in a married relationship then the understanding of this closeness might not be seen at a positive attribute.  Human beings need positive, close ties to other humans and marriage fulfills that need.
Children: This positive attribute seems like an obvious one but for those who are married the need to create offspring is a token of love between man and wife. This is a great blessing although a great challenge as well to raise good children.

Contentment: Even with disagreements between couples there still is a certain amount of contentment humans can feel in a marriage relationship with the right person. The knowledge of a committed relationship brings peace and security for both in the relationship.  It’s work in progress to be sure, but none the less a wonderful way to spend your life.

 With the war of words for the institution of marriage, the ongoing battle to keep this important aspect of our society stands strong. There are positive attributes of being man and wife which encourages and sets an example for our youth who are struggling with decisions of whether to get married or not.  As the song above says, the reason to bring two souls together in matrimony is because of love. The love we feel for each other as human beings.

Saturday, March 9, 2013

Is Marriage Becoming Obsolete?

Part 2 of a 3 Part Series....



There is no nice way to say this: families are under attack from all over the world.  Media executives might pussy-foot around the truth of the topic but let’s face facts: Families have not been considered a sacred institution for over ten years.

Case in point: A study done by the Pew Research Center shows the changing dynamics of the American family. It is no longer a mother and father couple but guardians or partners.  It is shown that 29 percent of children under the age of 18 now live with a parent or parents who are unwed or no longer married which according to the Pew Report released in November of 2010 shows an “fivefold increase from 1960”.

pendorelleco.org
Marriage is the concrete that keeps the family together. People who bring children into the world should be committed enough to stay together to raise them. The family is the foundation of our country and this should be the message for parents from all areas of life.

Hope Yen states in her article, No Love, No Marriage, from November 17th, 2010 that “The changing views of family are being driven largely by young adults 18-29, who are more likely than older generations to have an unmarried or divorced parent or have friends who do.” 

Most Americans might see her thought as a valid one but if we take a closer look to where these ideals are coming from, the driven ideal that marriage is unnecessary, can be traced back to the media news and entertainment world.

We are bombarded by social mores from our own entertainment saying if we are unhappy then do what it takes to make ourselves happy, no matter what.  If we are unhappy in a marriage, get a divorce and find someone else.  If we are unhappy raising children, send them off to someone else.  Never mind getting help to stay and figure out how we can fulfill the roles we had originally chosen instead of giving up.

The creation of same sex-marriage has been in our society for years which has had a detrimental affect on marriage between a man and women. Society’s intellectuals tell us its okay to have both. From David Blankenhorn’s writings, The Future of Marriage, he says this: “One can believe in same-sex marriage. One can believe that every child deserves a mother and a father. One cannot believe both. This statement would send the liberal world screaming but it is true. Children need a mother and a father who will raise them with upstanding morals and righteous ideals.

From The Family: A Proclamation to the World it states: “Parents have a sacred duty to rear their children in love and righteousness to provide for their physical and spiritual needs to teach them to love and serve one another, to observe the commandments of God and to be law-abiding citizens wherever they live.”

havegot.seesaa.net
From Family Watch International, its founder Sharon Slater says: “Social science research has conclusively proven that a strong family based on marriage between a man and a woman is the best environment to protect, nourish and develop individuals. This family structure provides significantly better outcomes than any alternative structure.”

Just from reading articles and blogs posted online, one can see that the mindset of those single adults discussing the topic of having to be married to be parents are completely different from 20 years ago when most of the world considered marriage an important step to parenthood.

The idea of committing oneself to a life with another scare those who have grown up with divorce as a way out but we must teach our children that divorce is not an option.  Marriage requires work at a relationship and this might be a dirty word to most but a necessary element to a healthy and long lasting marriage, but that is a whole other topic for our next article.....
For now, we must remember that we need to keep marriage in the forefront of our society.