Letters

Healthy families

John Carty

Contents - Oct 2009 - Buy a copy now Editorial: Anglican Communion's moment of truth - Michael Gilchrist Priestly Identity: Renewing the priesthood in the Year for Priests - Fr Anthony Denton News: The Church Around the World Community Life: 'Progressive' leadership and the demise of religious life - Br Paul Macrossan Youth: RISE: restoring integrity and sexual ethics to Australia's secular culture - Br Barry Coldrey Episcopacy: Bishop Luc Matthys: on being a bishop - Bishop Luc Matthys of Armidale Poetry: A Morning Poem - Bruce Dawe Seminary Life: Spiritual direction at Sydney's Good Shepherd Seminary - Fr Paul Glynn SM FOUNDATIONS OF FAITH: Cutting edge moral issues for the third millennium - Br Barry Coldrey Priesthood: Why the Catholic Church cannot ordain women - Kathleen Wood OAM Letters: Liturgy reform - Paul Martin Letters: Healthy families - John Carty Letters: Marriage and divorce - Arnold Jago Letters: Christian divisions - Jack Blair Letters: Galileo debate - David Walker Letters: Prayer for Priests - John Schmid Letters: Thanks from India - Fr. S. John Joseph Books: THE QUEST FOR SHAKESPEARE, by Joseph Pearce - Michael Daniel (reviewer) Books: THE CASE FOR CHRISTIANITY: St Justin Martyr on Religious Liberty, Robert Haddad - Br Michael McMurray CCS Books: AFTER THE HEART OF GOD, by Bishop Julian Porteous - Br Michael McMurray CCS (reviewer) Update: The 2009 Fighting Fund Books: This month's selection from AD Books Reflection: The Mass: priest and people offer sacrifice - Bishop Edward Slattery

The National Marriage Coalition, meeting recently in Canberra, inaugurated 13 August as National Marriage Day. The purpose of this was to demonstrate that one of the most fundamental ways of defending our nation is by fostering healthy families which come from the faithful fulfilment of marriage vows in good times and in bad.

The Marriage Amendment Act of 2004 defined marriage as a union between one man and one woman, voluntarily entered into for life. However, some now want to include in this definition same-sex relationships which are clearly not productive of normal healthy families, and must not become a "marriage" for respectability.

There are volumes of research demonstrating beyond doubt that intact, stable marriages are by far the best ways of retaining a good birthrate, and for the best conditions for children's nurture and society's well-being.

Divorce levels remain high - between one-third and one-half of all marriages - and de-facto and one parent families are increasing so much that our society is becoming deeply divided between high income married parent families and low- income single and de facto parent families, for example, through the high cost of housing.

The correlations between family breakdown and the pathways to poverty, educational failure, serious personal debt, addictions, crime and welfare-dependency are undeniable.

Families that persevere in good times and in bad have character and show that true, stable marriages really do matter; they deserve to be congratulated and encouraged.

This is not to belittle the heroic efforts of those who have to raise their children in less than ideal conditions, often through no fault of their own, e.g., through accident, illness or betrayal.

We must promote the traditional culture of the true, self-sacrificing love and life of stable marriages and reject the false, self-indulgent greed and lust of any unstable or sterile arrangement.

JOHN CARTY
Goornong, Vic

Reprinted from AD2000 Vol 22 No 9 (October 2009), p. 14