Ethics

Family life is where religion is experienced by children through the example of their parents.
Families share bible stories, hymns, poems and prayers - these are a good way for children to learn about their faith.
Parents will show their children how to pray to show that this is a natural and important part of their lives.
They will also take them to church to experience being part of a congregation, go to Sunday school.
Exodus - “Honour your Father and your mother”.

All of the adult gurus were married and believed that the family was the basis for a strong, safe, secure society.
Sikhism teaches that men and women are equal and each family member is expected to play their part in family life.
Sikhs see it as their duty to support their elderly parents because they supported them when they were growing up.
“It is a Sikh’s duty to get his children educated in Sikhism” - Rehat Maryadad.

Christian:
The bible says that pre-marital sex is sinful and Christians should follow all teachings of the bible.
All Christians are against adultery because it breaks the wedding vows to be faithful to each other. ‘Thou shalt not commit adultery’ - the Ten Commandments.

Sikhism:
Sikhism teaches that sex should only take place between a man and woman married to each other.
The gurus all restricted sex to marriage.
The Rahit Maryada says there should be no sex before marriage.
Adultery breaks the marriage union and this is manmukh behaviour which makes achieving mukti harder.
Adultery is forbidden by the Rahit Maryada.
All of the gurus were faithful husbands who didn’t commit adultery.
‘A Sikh should respect another mans wife as he would his own mother, and another mans daughter as his own daughter ‘ - Rahit Maryada.

Catholic’s:
Being a homosexual is not a sin but homosexual relationships are a sin.
The Catholic Church asks homosexuals to live without sexual activity.
The bible condemns homosexual activity.
The church teaches that people cannot help their sexual orientation but they can control their sexual activity.

Evangelical Protestant’s:
Many believe homosexuality is a sin.
They believe there should be no homosexual Christians and say prayers to give homosexuals the power of the Holy Spirit to change their sexual orientation.
They believe that the bible is the direct word of God and it condemns homosexuality.
They believe that the salvation o Christ can remove all sins.

Liberal Protestant’s:
Lifelong homosexual relationships are acceptable and therefore homosexuals are welcome to the church but homosexual relationships cannot be equal to Christian marriage.
They think the the teachings of the bible need updating.
Christians believe in love and acceptance and should be open and honest.

Banns - an announcement in church of your intention to marry.
Christians make their vows before God.
The wedding will include readings from the bible, at least 2 hymns and prayers - the first asking for God’s blessing and the closing prayer blesses the couple and wishes them love and joy.
The vicar gives a short sermon.
Vows - these are promises the couple make to each other. Christian vows are taken from the Book of Common Prayer.
Rings are exchanged - these are a symbol of eternity, love and commitment.

The Ceremony of Betrothal:
The priest offers prayers and then asks God to bless the rings and the bride and groom. He does this three times in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Th rings are then exchanged three times which is a symbol that the lives of the two are being entwined into one.

The Service of Marriage:
Two white candles are lit, one from the bride and one for the groom. These represent the spiritual willingness of the couple to receive Christ the “light of the world” into their lives together.
The priest then takes two wedding crowns and blesses the bride and groom in the name of the Trinity and then place stage crowns on their heads. The best man and made of honour then swap the crowns three times as a symbol of the union.
The a cup containing wine is presented to the bride and groom and they each drink three times from the ‘common cup’. This represents how the couple will share everything in life.

Marriage is seen as a commitment before Waheguru and its main purpose should be companionship and help on a couples spiritual path rather than sexual enjoyment.
For Sikhs, marriage is as much about the joining of two families as it is the joining of two people.
Once a couple has agreed to marry there is usually a meeting at the girl’s home to give both families a chance to get to know each other better.
The bride usually wears red and gold on the wedding day as they are symbols of happiness.
Before the ceremony starts, members of both families exchange gifts and sing hymns.
The couple enter and bow to the Guru Granth Sahib to show acceptance.
Once consent has been given, the brides father puts the end of the scarf that has been placed on the grooms should into the brides hand. As the wedding hymn is sung, they walk four times around the palki to be married.
Karah Prashad is distributed and everyone leaves for the reception.