Marriage and the family

Cohabitation and marriage

•Increased availability of contraception, especially the pill, made it safer to have sex without becoming pregnant. •Christian teaching is not as influential, so sex before married was no longer seen in society as a terrible sin •More celebrities lived together before marriage making it seem more acceptable •The media showed relationships and sex outside marriage making it seem more acceptable.    Divorce •Divorce became cheaper and easier to get. •Increased equality for women meant that women were no longer as financially dependent on their husband  and no longer prepared to accept unequal treatment. •People live longer, so to commit themselves to one person for the rest of their lives does not seem achievable or desirable.

Family life

•The traditional expectation of what a family is, has greatly changed. •The number of people cohabiting, the increase in divorce, the acceptance of unmarried mothers has all led to different understandings of family life. Homosexuality •The change in laws has made homosexuality more acceptable. •Medical research has shown that homosexuality is most probably genetic. •Increased openness of gay celebrities has increased acceptance of homosexuality •The work of organisations such as Stonewall has changed attitudes of society

Roman Catholic teaching

Sex was given by God for procreation and must take place within marriage. 

Pre-marital sex is therefore wrong and Catholics should follow teaching of the Church. 

Church of England

As Christians, we need to accept modern life.

Couples may live together before marriage, but are expected to marry when starting a family.