The Value of Marriage and Divorce in Society vs. Biblical Times

Marriage rates have decreased in the United States, in the 1970s there were 76.5 marriages for 1000 unmarried women over 15 years of age and in 2008 it dropped to 34.8 marriages for 1000 unmarried women (Lee and Payne 2010). Marriage rates have decreased for a number of reasons, education attainment, religion, change of social norms, and many more. According to Jeremy E. Uecker and Charles E. Stokes (2008), the age of marriage is related to school enrollment. Right after high school, at the age of 18, there is more of a chance of marriage at this time then in the age of 19, the reason for this is that at the age of 19 most young adults are entering college and not focused on relationships and marriage (Uecker and Stokes 2008). The chance

Many legal and financial advantages can be attained through marriage. Instead of getting married after high school, people tend to go to college, get their life together, and then marry. The average groom is now thirty-seven and bride thirty-four (Discuss). According to Associated Press Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, “41 percent of spouses admit to infidelity, either physical or emotional.” Couples these days aren’t communicating the proper way. Instead they get mad at each other and ignore one another. One or both people in the relationship have “checked out”, but they don’t want to divorce for the sake of the children. Or they still love each other, valuing each other as a support system and as close friends, but don’t feel that intimacy toward one another. As said in a marriage article from faqs.org, “The study, by the National Marriage Project at Rutgers University, found that the marriage rate among Americans is at its lowest point ever. Over the last forty years, the rate has fallen forty-three percent. In addition, fewer people are reporting themselves as being “very happy” in their marriages.” Today, most wedding ceremonies involve a religious service, which contains many traditional features that are significant to their cultures. Christian’s services contain wording that has been unchanged since the

In Andrew J. Cherlin’s essay “American Marriage In Transition”, he discusses how marriage in America is evolving from the universal marriage. Cherlin’s definition of the universal marriage in his essay is the man is the breadwinner of the household and the woman is the homemaker. In the 20th century according to Cherlin, the meaning of marriage has been altered such as the changing division of labor, childbearing outside of marriage, cohabitation, gay marriage and the result of long- term cultural and material trends (1154). During the first transition of marriage, Cherlin discusses how in America, Europe, and Canada the only socially accepted way to have sexual relations with a person and to have children is to be married (1154). The second change in marriage occurred in 2000, where the median age of marriage in the United States for men is 27 and women is 25 (1155). Many young adults stayed single during this time and focused on their education and starting their careers. During the second change, the role of law increasingly changed, especially in the role of law in divorce (1155). It is proven in today’s research marriage has a different definition than what it did back in the 1950’s. Today marriage can be defined as getting married to the same gender or getting remarried to someone who already has kids. The roles in a marriage are evolving to be a little more flexible and negotiable. However, women still do a lot of the basic household chores and taking care of the

My opinions are based solely on my personal experiences and the experiences of the people that I know and have observed. That being said, marriage and divorce statistics do support my claim. According to the National Center for Health Statistics, approximately 60 percent of marriages in which the couple marries between age 20 and 25 will end in

The United States of America is the land of the free and the home of the brave; however, it can also be called the country that holds the highest divorce rates. America’s divorce rate in 2010 was at forty one percent and is still currently growing (Divorce Rates by Country). Forty percent of these divorces had children involved (Divorce Rates in America). With such shocking statistics, it is easy to see that America’s divorce system is in dire need of change. Since divorce can ruin families, harm a child’s all around well-being, and holds the potential of being prevented, there should be more strict regulations to receive a divorce and a stronger push for covenant marriages.

In over half a century, marriage has transformed from being a social requirement to simply being an option in today’s society. What has caused this change? Many institutions in our society have changed drastically along with marriage. Although these institutions have not caused marriage to be optional, they do strongly correlate with the decreased value. The economy, education, religion, and government have all altered since the 1950s. When any institution encounters a change, all other institutions are affected. Family is a major institution in society, and I believe that marriage is an important aspect of this institution. Cohabitation, religion, women in the work world and divorce have all effected the way marriage is viewed today.

Over the past decades, how Americans perceive the marital relationship greatly reformed, illuminating society’s values. In the past, marriage use to represent a legal contract to bear children and acquire finances, but today, “In all too many communities in the US, especially poor and minority ones, marriage is a retreat” (Wilcox et al., 2005, p. 5). Rather than observing marriage as an obligation, Americans now perceive a marriage to entail intimate commitments between affectionate partners. America transformed its values from the society and family to the individual level. Of the major values changes, which occurred over the past decades, this article exemplifies an increase in single-parent homes, cohabiting, and divorce. Due to America’s expansion of individualism and materialism, individuals no longer perceive their marriage as life long commitments. This transformation occurred because of a shift in societal values; society no longer places stigma on divorce and single parents, which aided in the increasing numbers of marital shifts. In fact, Americans tend to enter marriages with unrealistic expectations, expecting their partner to fulfill all of their needs without conflict. It stands as our unrealistic expectations and perceptions that caused a shift in marriages.

A survey of 14000 adults states in ‘A Guide to Family Issues: The Marriage Advantage’ that marriage was a pertinent factor contributing to happiness and satisfaction with forty percent of the married individuals being happy as opposed to 25 percent of either single or cohabiting individuals. The same study shows that ninety eight percent of never married respondents wished to marry and out of those 88% believed that it should be a lifelong commitment. Even though, divorce rates are rising numerous researches show that young people aspire to have a lasting marriage.

Imagine a world with no family, no true happiness, and your rights as an individual was completely revoked. If a higher authority came along and determined the future of our society, then we would end up no differently than the Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. The characters have lost their rights as an individual and now rely on one another to gain a sense of security. Ironically, Huxley’s prediction of the future is starting to become a reality as our society is becoming unstable by separating from any true relationship or family values and relying more on casual relationships, technology, and material things. Society is starting to look at marriage as an obstacle, rather than a union.

From a historical perspective, marriages have always been recognized as important to the security and future of a state (Brake, 2012). Procreation created a labor force and armies, while family units were an efficient method for creating good citizens. For this reason, governments throughout human history have sought to legally sanction and protect marriage in its various forms, as long as the goals of marriage aligned with the goals of the state. In the United States, marriage prior to the 1970s was defined in terms of gender-specific roles and divorce was discouraged by the imposition of sanctions. Well-defined gender roles in marriage and the long-term preservation of the family unit were therefore perceived to be in the best interests of American Society until the 1970s. In the aftermath of the feminist movement, however, gender roles were eliminated and no fault divorce legislation was passed in many states.

Religion and the Bible encourage, and perhaps demand marriage from two individuals to create them as one. The Lord God said, "It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him (Genesis 2:18)".  "That at the beginning the Creator 'made them male and female,' and said, 'For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh'? So they are no longer two, but one. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate (Mathew: 19:4-6)". Why does religion place such an importance on a union of marriage? An answer is suggestively related as to why automobile and health insurance companies provide a discount on their policies when filing married. According to State Farm Auto Insurance, two married individuals are much more likely to accept upon themselves responsibility, maturity, and a longer healthier and more satisfying life. Insurance agencies believe your life will be more structured and meaningful, to provide you with a policy. Living alone or entering and departing unstable casual

In today’s world divorce is predominate in young, older, or newly-wed couples. There is an average of 100 divorces an hour, and 2,400 a day (Divorce 2012). Couples considering divorce are having to make very hard decisions, I’m writing about the Christian point of view of divorce and remarriage. Although I have never had to experience a divorce it is a subject that intrigues me.

The law defines divorce as ¡§a legal dissolution of the marriage contract by a court or other body having competent authority. This is properly a divorce, and called, technically, divorce a vinculo matrimonii. ``from the bond of matrimony.'' (b) The separation of a married woman from the bed and board of her husband -- divorce a mensa et toro (or thoro), ``from bed board.''¡¨ Does this definition follow that of the Bible?

When it comes to marriage in the 21st century marriage have succumbed to higher divorce rates than ever before. Divorce happens more often than not these days because young adults nowadays are quick to jump into marriage because of wanting that social status and rush into things too quickly. It has been a fact that the younger you get married the better the chance your marriage will end up in a divorce. Due to the lack of judgement and thought process of it. There has been studies of the chances of marriage lasting or end up being a divorce and the results are staggering. 40-50% of marriages end up in divorces, so the thought of marriages lasting forever are 50-50. In the online article, 10 Reasons it’s Totally Okay Not to Get

Marriage has lost its meaning throughout the years. As I walk through the grocery store, it seems that the headline of every magazine has a story on the topic of someone getting divorced or getting cheated on. There is no point in spending thousands of dollars on a wedding if the marriage is only going to last for three years. People know before they get married that they are agreeing to be tied together at the hip for the rest of their lives. No one takes marriage seriously anymore, which causes