Commitment to Marriage
\nA Letter to the Third Extraordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops<\/p>\n
Holy Father, Eminences, and Excellencies,<\/p>\n
We rejoice that the Holy Father has captured the world\u2019s attention and so much good will for the Christian faith! Like others we are deeply moved by his expressions of love and mercy, echoing the love and mercy of Christ, especially for those who are defenseless and abandoned.<\/p>\n
It is in this context that we welcome the decision to convene an Extraordinary Synod of Bishops to examine the challenges to marriage and the family.\u00a0 Like each of you, we believe the family is, with the Church itself, the greatest institutional manifestation of Christ\u2019s love.\u00a0 For those who wish to love as He would have us love, marriage and the family are indispensable, both as vehicles of salvation and as bulwarks of human society.<\/p>\n
Recent popes have made these points abundantly clear.\u00a0 For example, Pope Benedict XVI wrote that, \u201cMarriage is truly an instrument of salvation, not only for married people but for the whole of society.\u201d And, in Evangelii Gaudium, Your Holiness wrote that \u201cthe indispensable contribution of marriage to society transcends the feelings and momentary needs of the couple.\u201d<\/p>\n
This Synod is an opportunity to express timeless truths about marriage. Why do those truths matter? How do they represent true love, not \u201cexclusion\u201d or \u201cprejudice,\u201d or any of the other charges brought against marriage today?\u00a0 Men and women need desperately to hear the truth about why they should get married in the first place.\u00a0 And, once married, why Christ and the Church desire that they should remain faithful to each other throughout their lives on this earth.\u00a0 That, when marriage gets tough (as it does for most couples), the Church will be a source of support, not just for individual spouses, but for the marriage itself.<\/p>\n
You have written so powerfully, Holy Father, of the importance of a new evangelization within the Church: \u201cAn evangelizing community gets involved by word and deed in people\u2019s daily lives; it bridges distances, it is willing to abase itself if necessary and it embraces human life, touching the suffering flesh of Christ in others.\u201d<\/p>\n
May we humbly suggest that in the context of marriage and family life your words are a call to personal responsibility, not only for our own spouses and children, but for the marriages of those God has put by our side: our relatives and friends, those in our churches and in our schools.<\/p>\n
The stakes are high.\u00a0 According to a 2013 Child Trends international report<\/a><\/strong>: \u201cDramatic increases in cohabitation, divorce, and nonmarital childbearing in the Americas, Europe, and Oceania over the last four decades suggest that the institution of marriage is much less relevant in these parts of the world.\u201d\u00a0 In the United States the marriage rate is the lowest ever recorded<\/a>, unmarried cohabitation is rapidly becoming an acceptable alternative to marriage, <\/a>and more than half <\/a>of births to women under 30 years of age now occur outside marriage. Among countless other negative associations, each of these trends has been linked<\/a> to lower net worth and economic mobility, poverty, and welfare \u2013 for women and children, in particular.<\/p>\n Among existing marriages, many are fragile and strained. Between forty and fifty percent of all first marriages in the U.S. are projected to end in divorce<\/a><\/strong>. This rate rises sharply with each successive remarriage and research suggests the reason is not low marital quality, but weak commitment<\/strong>.<\/a><\/p>\n The consequences of divorce and cohabitation for children and adults are many and diverse \u2013 from poverty and lower educational achievement to poorer physical health; from lower marital commitment in adulthood to earlier death. \u00a0And while every nation is unique, studies show that the impact of these trends spans the globe. A small sampling of such studies: China<\/a>, \u00a0Finland<\/a>, Sweden<\/a>, Uruguay<\/a>, Mexico<\/a>, Greece<\/a>, Africa<\/a>, and East Asian Pacific nations<\/a>.<\/p>\n The costs of pornography <\/a><\/strong>to societies are significant. Studies of pornography\u2019s impact on relationships<\/a> suggest it is a major contributor to the destruction of marriages. Unfortunately, long-term research on pornography\u2019s effect on marriage is virtually nonexistent.<\/p>\n So called \u201cno fault divorce\u201d laws in the U.S. and many other nations have licensed a system in which judges and lawyers facilitate the dissolution of marriages<\/a><\/strong>, often against the will of spouses who stand firm in their marital commitment.<\/p>\n Despite the bleakness of these trends, we are encouraged and made resolute by the Holy Father\u2019s exhortation: \u201cChallenges exist to be overcome! Let us be realists, but without losing our joy, our boldness and our hope-filled commitment.\u201d<\/p>\n Perhaps the boldest new way we can evangelize married couples (and by extension their children\u2019s future marriages) is to build small communities of married couples who support each other unconditionally in their vocations to married life. These communities would provide networks of support grounded in the bonds of faith and family, commitment to lifelong marriage, and responsibility to and for each other.<\/p>\n Here we offer some practical ways to create and sustain such communities:<\/p>\n \u2022 Commission the Pontifical Council on the Family to conduct cross-discipline, longitudinal research on the role of pornography and \u201cno fault\u201d divorce in the marriage crisis.<\/p>\n \u2022 Educate seminarians. Provide mandatory courses covering social science evidence on the benefits of marriage, threats to marriage, and the consequences of divorce and cohabitation to children and society.<\/p>\n \u2022 Train priests to showcase in their homilies the spiritual and social value of marriage, contemporary challenges to it, and parish help for troubled marriages. A recent study<\/a><\/strong> found that 72% of American Catholic women say the weekly homily is their primary source for learning about the faith.<\/p>\n \u2022 Create small, vibrant networks of strong married couples as mentors at the parish level, available to give spouses the tools to sustain healthy, lifelong marriages.<\/p>\n \u2022 Educate parishioners on the extraordinary influence they can have on the marriages of friends and family. Social science data show that the presence of divorced family and friends increases one\u2019s own risk of divorce<\/a>. Alternatively, the data suggest that family members and friends can increase commitment<\/a> and satisfaction<\/a> within marriages of those they love through their example and support.<\/p>\n \u2022 Encourage and support the reconciliation of married couples who are separated or have been divorced by civil courts.<\/p>\n \u2022 Request bishops worldwide to initiate regular prayers during Sunday Mass for strong, faithful marriages.<\/p>\n \u2022 Support efforts to preserve what is right and just in existing marriage laws, to resist any changes to those laws that would further weaken the institution, and to restore legal provisions that protect marriage as a conjugal union of one man and one woman, entered into with an openness to the gift of children, and lived faithfully and permanently as the foundation of the natural family.<\/p>\n \u2022 Support religious freedom in divorce courts. Many do not know that religious freedom is routinely violated by divorce judges who ignore or demean the views of a spouse who seeks to save a marriage, keep the children in a religious school, or prevent an abandoning spouse from exposing the children to an unmarried sexual partner. Begin a consortium of attorneys and legislators to combat this problem.<\/p>\n To accomplish any of these goals on an international scale would be a great step forward for marriages and families. To accomplish them all may turn the worldwide marriage crisis on its head.<\/p>\n With your leadership we will help marriages to succeed and flourish by placing the greatest value on marital commitment – at every level of society, in every corner of the world. We thank Your Holiness, Eminences, and Excellencies for taking up this vital task and you may be assured of our prayers for its great success.<\/p>\n Signed:<\/p>\n [Affiliations, where listed, are for identification purposes only]<\/p>\n Greg and Julie Alexander Ryan T. Anderson Erika Bachiochi, Esq., legal scholar and author, Massachusetts<\/p>\n Monsignor Renzo Bonetti Gerard Bradley Ana Mar\u00eda Celis Brunet Mary Eberstadt Jason and Crystalina Evert Patrick Fagan Thomas Farr Silvio Ferrari Richard Fitzgibbons Juan G. Navarro Floria Matthew Franck Robert P. George Mary Ann Glendon Bruce and Jeannie Hannemann George A. Harne Mary Hasson Alan J. Hawkins Kent R. Hill Byron Johnson Thomas Lickona John McCarthy Rocco Mimmo Gloria M. Moran Jennifer Roback Morse Melissa Moschella Rafael Navarro-Valls Rafael Palomino Marcello Pera Vicente Prieto Fr. Juan Puigb\u00f3 David Quinn Mark Regnerus Bal\u00e1zs Schanda Alan E. Sears Reverend Charles Sikorsky O. Carter Snead Reverend D. Paul Sullins Rebecca Ryskind Teti Mervyn Thomas Javier Martinez-Torron Hilary Towers D. Vincent Twomey Paul C. Vitz Rick Warren, Robert Wilken Commitment to Marriage A Letter to the Third Extraordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops Holy Father, Eminences, and Excellencies, We rejoice that the Holy Father has captured the world\u2019s attention and so much good will for the Christian faith! Like others we are deeply moved by his expressions of love and mercy, echoing … Continue reading Commitment to Marriage –an open letter to the Pope and bishops<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[38],"tags":[1700,1744],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/communio.stblogs.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31554"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/communio.stblogs.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/communio.stblogs.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/communio.stblogs.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/communio.stblogs.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=31554"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/communio.stblogs.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31554\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":31560,"href":"https:\/\/communio.stblogs.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31554\/revisions\/31560"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/communio.stblogs.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=31554"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/communio.stblogs.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=31554"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/communio.stblogs.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=31554"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nFounders, The Alexander House Apostolate, Texas<\/p>\n
\nWilliam E. Simon Fellow in Religion and a Free Society, The Heritage Foundation, Washington, DC<\/p>\n
\nFounder and President, Fondazione Famiglia Dono Grande, Italy<\/p>\n
\nProfessor of Law, University of Notre Dame Law School<\/p>\n
\nProfessor of Law, Pontificia Universidad Cat\u00f3lica de Chile<\/p>\n
\nSenior Fellow, Ethics and Public Policy Center, Washington, DC<\/p>\n
\nFounders, Chastity Project, Colorado<\/p>\n
\nDirector, The Marriage and Religion Research Institute, Family Research Council, Washington, DC<\/p>\n
\nVisiting Associate Professor and Director, The Religious Freedom Project Georgetown University<\/p>\n
\nProfessor of Law, University of Milan, Italy<\/p>\n
\nDirector, The Institute for Marital Healing, Pennsylvania<\/p>\n
\nProfesor Ordinario, Pontificia Universidad Cat\u00f3lica Argentina<\/p>\n
\nWilliam E. and Carol G. Simon Center on Religion and the Constitution
\nThe Witherspoon Institute, New Jersey<\/p>\n
\nMcCormick Professor of Jurisprudence, Princeton University<\/p>\n
\nLearned Hand Professor of Law, Harvard University<\/p>\n
\nCo-Directors, RECLAiM Sexual Health
\nCo-Founders, Elizabeth Ministry International<\/p>\n
\nPresident, The College of Saint Mary Magdalen<\/p>\n
\nFellow, Catholic Studies Program, Ethics and Public Policy Center, Washington DC<\/p>\n
\nProfessor of Family Life, Brigham Young University<\/p>\n
\nInternational Development leader, Washington DC<\/p>\n
\nDistinguished Professor of the Social Sciences and
\nDirector, Institute for Studies of Religion, Baylor University<\/p>\n
\nDirector, Center for the 4th and 5th Rs (Respect and Responsibility) State University of New York at Cortland<\/p>\n
\nDean, School of Philosophy, The Catholic University of America<\/p>\n
\nChairman, Ambrose Centre for Religious Liberty, Sydney, Australia<\/p>\n
\nProfessor of Law, Chair of Law, Religion and Public Policy, University of La Coru\u00f1a Spain<\/p>\n
\nPresident, Ruth Institute, California<\/p>\n
\nAssistant Professor of Philosophy, The Catholic University of America<\/p>\n
\nEmeritus Professor of Law, Complutense University, Spain
\nSecretary General of the Spanish Royal Academy of Jurisprudence and Legislation<\/p>\n
\nProfessor of Law, Complutense University, Spain<\/p>\n
\nFormer President, Senate of Italy
\nProfessor, Pontifical Lateran University, Rome, Italy<\/p>\n
\nUniversidad de La Sabana, Bogot\u00e1, Colombia<\/p>\n
\nDiocese of Arlington, VA<\/p>\n
\nDirector, The Iona Institute, Ireland<\/p>\n
\nAssociate Professor of Sociology, University of Texas at Austin<\/p>\n
\nProfessor of Law, P\u00e1zm\u00e1ny P\u00e9ter Catholic University, Hungary<\/p>\n
\nPresident, CEO, & General Counsel, Alliance Defending Freedom<\/p>\n
\nPresident, The Institute for the Psychological Sciences, Virginia<\/p>\n
\nProfessor of Law, William P. and Hazel B. White Director, Center for Ethics and Culture, University of Notre Dame<\/p>\n
\nProfessor of Sociology, The Catholic University of America
\nSenior Fellow for Family Studies, Family Research Council
\nPresident, The Leo Institute, Washington, DC<\/p>\n
\nCenter for Family Development at Our Lady of Bethesda<\/p>\n
\nChief Executive, Christian Solidarity Worldwide, United Kingdom<\/p>\n
\nProfessor of Law, Chair of the Department of\u00a0Law and Religion, Complutense University<\/p>\n
\nPsychologist, Manassas, Virginia<\/p>\n
\nProfessor Emeritus of Moral Theology, Pontifical University, Maynooth, Ireland<\/p>\n
\nSenior Scholar and Professor, The Institute for the Psychological Sciences, Virginia<\/p>\n
\nFounder and Pastor, Saddleback Church, Lake Forest, California<\/p>\n
\nWilliam R. Kenan, Jr. Professor of the History of Christianity Emeritus, University of Virginia<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"