Oh hey, look. Remember that time I said that anyone complaining that gay marriage destroys the sanctity of marriage should also be in support of a proposition banning divorce? Looks like it wasn’t just me.
In a movement that seems ripped from the pages of Comedy Channel writers, John Marcotte wants to put a measure on the ballot next year to ban divorce in California.
The 2010 California Marriage Protection Act is meant to be a satirical statement after California voters outlawed gay marriage in 2008, largely on the argument that a ban is needed to protect the sanctity of traditional marriage. If that’s the case, then Marcotte reasons voters should have no problem banning divorce.
[via NPR]
Props to that guy.
In July 2008, hotelier and developer Doug Manchester donated $125,000 to help gather signatures for a proposition that would ban same-sex marriage in California. The early money was crucial to getting the initiative — which ultimately passed — on the ballot. At the time, he told The New York Times that he made the donation because of “my Catholic faith and longtime affiliation with the Catholic Church,” which preferred that marriage remain between a man and a woman. Indeed, the Catholic Church has vehemently opposed gay marriage. Then again, it’s also not too keen on divorce.
(via San Diego CityBeat)
I’ve said this before, though maybe not here, but a lot of people have their priorities mixed up when they care more about 1% of the population ruining the sanctity of marriage when roughly 50% of marriages end in divorce.
Let’s start pushing for a proposition to ban divorce and see how people like it. If you think that makes less sense than letting gay people get married, maybe you should reevaluate some things.
The call for young marriage raises questions: How young is too young? What if marriage is viewed as a ticket to guilt-free sex? What about the fact that marrying young is the No. 1 predictor of divorce?
(via Evangelicals Try Early Marriage)
One one hand, I think getting married young just for guilt-free sex is the stupidest idea ever. I feel like kids today probably mature slower since they often don’t have much taste of real independence or “adult life” until after high school and, for some, after college, unlike people 100 years ago who were probably more prepared for adult life by 16. Like it says, “marrying young is the number one predictor of divorce.” Not sure where they got that stat, but I believe it based on my own anecdotal evidence.
On the other hand, it makes a good point that the longer you wait, the harder it becomes to avoid that temptation and urges.
So pick your poison, I guess: marry young and risk a messed-up marriage, or wait until you find the right person and risk giving in to temptation. I’m 25 and unmarried, so I guess you know which poison I took. (Whether that was an active choice or not is up for debate.)
And then there’s comments like this that make me wonder if Christian culture has gone completely off the deep end:
Among evangelicals, there’s a tendency to wait because many believe God “is going to deliver me a spouse right to my door,” so they don’t actively seek one, said Glenn Stanton, director of family formation studies for the evangelical ministry Focus on the Family, a young marriage promoter.
Another symptom of the passivity of today’s Christian “man.” But that’s a topic for another day.
I read somewhere once that when a person writes their goal or dream down and repeats the idea aloud often, it’s more likely to come true. I also read somewhere once that people who date more people before getting married are more likely to get divorced. I wonder if that’s the same psychological effect at work.
So here’s a thought: what if we could convince everyone to write down “avoid divorce” or “stay married” or “live happily ever after” on a piece of paper every day? What if we constantly reminded ourselves to speak in terms of an entire lifetime together when talking to our significant other? Would our embarrassingly high divorce rate go down?
Just a thought. Pass it on.
