Marriage and the family

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  • Marriage and the family
    • Changing attitudes in the UK
      • In the UK in the 1960s, it was expected that young people would not have sex before marriage. Most would be married by 25 and marry in a church. The household was made up of a husband, wife, and their children
      • Most people have sex before marriage
      • It is now socially acceptable for couples to cohabit rather than marry
      • An increase in reconstituted families as a result of divorce
      • Civil partnerships introduced (2004)
      • Reasons for the changes
        • Cohabitation and marriage: contraception made sex safer from pregnancy. Christianity has lost its influence
        • Divorce: law made it easier and cheaper to get a divorce (1969). More equal rights mean women can now afford to support themselves
        • Family life: More divorces mean more remarriage. social acceptance of unmarried mothers mean more single parent families
        • Homosexuality: Changes in the law make it easier to be openly homosexual. Scientists have shown that homosexuality is probably genetic and not a choice. Gay rights organisations like stonewall have worked for equal rights
    • Christian attitudes to sex outside marriage
      • God gave us sex for the procreation of children who should be brought up in a Christian family. so sex should only be within a marriage
        • Genesis 1:28: "And God said 'Be fruitful and increase in number, fill the earth and subdue it'"
      • The Bible says sex outside marriage is sinful
        • Exodus 20:14: "You shalt not commit adultery."
      • Adultery breaks the wedding vows made in front of God
    • Marriage
      • So the couple can have the love and support of each other
        • Wedding vows
      • The procreation of children
        • Genesis: "Be fruitful and multiply"
      • The bringing up of a Christian family
    • Divorce
      • Catholics
        • Jesus taught that divorce was wrong
          • Mark 10:10: "Whoever divorces his wife and marries another is guilty of adultery against her
        • The couple have made a covenant wit God that cannot be broken
          • Mark: "What God has joined together, let no man divide"
        • Catechism of the Catholic Church: "The re-marriage of persons divorced goes against the plans and laws of God"
        • Re-marriage would be bigamy and adultery as there can be no religious divorce
    • Family life
      • Family was created by God as the best environment in which a couple can live and raise children
      • Having children  is one of he purposes of a Christian marriage
      • Children are taught the difference between right and wrong
      • Salvation army: "Family life based on marriage is the bedrock of a stable society"
      • How the church supports family life
        • Catholic education
        • Sunday school
        • Confirmation
        • Baptism
        • Family-friendly services
    • Homosexuality
      • Catholics
        • Accept being homosexual is not a sin
          • "Hate the sin, love the sinner"
        • God calls homosexuals to chastity
        • Believe it is a sin to criticise homosexuals
          • Everyone is made in the image and likeness of God
        • Leviticus 18:11: "It is an abomination for a man to lie with another man as he does a woman. It is unclean"
        • Any sexual activity should be open to the possibility of creating children
          • "All sexual activity should be open to the possibility of new life"
      • Evangelical Protestants
        • The Bible says homosexuality is a sin and they believe that it is the direct word of God
        • They believe the salvation of Christ can remove the sin of homosexuality
        • Romans 1:26: "Those who do unnatural things with someone of the same sex will be punished"
      • Liberal Protestants
        • They believe the Bible texts condemning homosexuality shows the beliefs of those at the time not the word of God
        • The major Christian belief in love and acceptance means homosexuals must be accepted
        • The Bible needs to be reinterpreted for today's society
    • Contraception
      • Methods
        • Natural family planning: Reducing the chance of becoming pregnant by planning sex around the most infertile time of a woman's monthly cycle
        • Barrier methods: Condoms prevent the sperm from reaching the egg. Also stop the spread of STDs
        • Hormonal methods or abortifacients: Hormonal drugs like the pill stop a woman from producing eggs. The IUD or morning after pill prevent a fertilized egg from attaching itself to a womb.
      • Christian attitudes
        • Catholics
          • Accept natural contraception but not artificial as it prevents one of the purposes of sex
            • Casti Connubii banned Catholics from using artificial contraception
            • Pope Pius XII says Catholics can use natural contraception
        • Non-Catholic Christians
          • Allowed as long as they are to limit family size
          • Nothing in the bible against it
          • CofE acepts the use of all coontraception by a married couple

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