Catholics Largely Accepting of Divorce, New Survey Finds

From "Religion News in Brief," AP, February 14, 2008:

WASHINGTON -- Most Roman Catholics say church teachings shape their views of marriage, yet they also get some tenets wrong and are largely accepting of divorce, a new survey found...

A majority of Catholics -- 55 percent -- said their opinions about marriage have been at least "somewhat" informed by church teaching.

Most accurately described church teachings about the sacrament of marriage, including that the church does not consider a civil marriage after divorce to be sacramentally valid. However, 76 percent of adult Catholics also said divorce is acceptable in some cases...

On the whole, Catholics were comparable to the U.S. population in marriage demographics, including marriage age and frequency of divorce, the study found...

posted by Imapp Staff at 11:19 AM | link

British Polygamists to get Welfare Benefits

In a secret move only recently discovered,

a panel of four government departments, after a review that began in November 2006, has decided that all the wives of a Muslim man may collect state benefits, provided that the marriages took place in a country where multiple spouses are legal.

This development can only increase the pressure for the UK to relax the prohibition on polygamy and group marriage.

The Life-Style Left has been claiming that every lifestyle should be equally supported by the government: monogamous marriage should not be "priveleged" by the state. The Left seems to believe that legalizing polygamy, or polyamory as they prefer to call it, will result in a Marin County Hippie Love Fest with all the Birkenstocked commune members sharing all household and childcare tasks and getting along nicely. But once multiple marriages are sanctioned by the state, there will be no stopping Muslim-style polygamy, which, will not be, shall we say, a Hippie Love Fest. Polygamy as practiced in the Muslim world is a not a pro-woman institution. And because Muslim-style polygamy will certainly produce more children than the typical Leftist group marriage, it will not take long for Sharia-style polygamy to crowd out feminist-style polygamy.

The Left should really start thinking this through.
Read the whole post at my blog.

Labels: polygamy

posted by Jennifer Roback Morse at 7:43 PM | link

Editorial: Let N.J. Adoptees Get First Birth Certificates

From "Let N.J. adoptees get first birth certificates," Courier-Post Editorial, January 29, 2008:

Legislators should approve a [newly proposed bill co-sponsored by state sens. Diane Allen, R-Burlington, and Joseph Vitale, D-Middlesex] that effectively balances the rights of adoptees and birth mothers...

Birth mothers, who often made the difficult decision to give up a child, can choose to remain anonymous or be contacted. They have a year from the passage of the bill to submit a request to keep their information private...

Even if the birth mother declines contact, she still would be compelled to provide her adopted child with important health, cultural and social history. If the parent fails to provide this information, the original birth certificate can be released to the adoptee...

[Under this bill] adoptees would not be forced to be in the dark about their identities and biological history. That change is decades overdue.

posted by Imapp Staff at 4:50 PM | link

New Study: Why First-Born Children Succeed

One possible answer, according to this study, is they get more attention from their parents and more quality time with their parents. Parents devote more attention to their children when children are younger, so the eldest gets the advantage of more child-centered parents when he is older (because they are doing "family time" with the younger ones).

Interesting new finding: youngest children in large families get just as much attention as youngest children in small families. It's an "elder advantage" not a "small family advantage."
posted by maggie at 12:02 PM | link

CO Couple Sues to Void SSM Ban

From "2 Sue to Void Ban on Same-Sex Marriage," NY Times, February 14, 2008:

DENVER — A lesbian couple from nearby Englewood are seeking to overturn Colorado’s constitutional ban on same-sex marriage, in what is thought to be the first challenge to the 2006 ballot initiative that established it.

[The couple appeared before a county court judge] to face a trespassing charge stemming from a brief sit-in they staged [after they] were refused a marriage license from the Denver Clerk and Recorder Office. [The judge] set a trial date of April 14.

Earlier this week, [the couple] filed a motion with the court claiming that Amendment 43, which defines marriage as the union of one man and one woman, violated their constitutional right to equal protection. The measure was approved by 55 percent of Colorado voters 15 months ago...

posted by Imapp Staff at 9:02 AM | link

Radio Station Giving Away Free Divorce

From "Radio station giving away free divorce," AP, February 13, 2008:

A Charleston [West Virginia] radio station is observing Valentine's Day with a reminder that Cupid sometimes misses his mark.

WKLC-FM, better known as Rock 105, is giving away a free divorce...

Through 4 p.m. on Thursday, Valentine's Day, applications for the free divorce will be accepted on the classic rock station's Web site, http://www.wklc.com. The winning name will be drawn at 5 p.m....

posted by Imapp Staff at 8:53 AM | link

Marriage and Schools in Massachusetts

There has previously been some discussion here about how the redefinition of marriage in Massachusetts has (as with Massachusetts Catholic Charities and adoption placements) or will affect other matters such as religious liberty. A case decided at the end of January highlights effects on education.

The case involved parents of first and second grade children who objected to books sent home with children (the first grader) or read in class (the second grader) that promoted acceptance of same-sex marriage or same-sex couple headed families.

The January 31st opinion of a panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit is long and addresses a number of issues but a few are particularly relevant in the context of marriage. First, the court noted that Massachusetts has a law that requires parents be given notice of curriculum involving “human sexual education or human sexuality issues.” The school argued this statute was inapplicable because the challenged books did not involve sexuality so the school had no obligation to the parents. Thus, it can be assumed that the redefinition of marriage in Massachusetts has made discussion of same-sex relationships part of the “family life” curriculum (not subject to opt-out provisions) rather than “human sexuality issues” (that would have allowed a parent opt-out).

In response to the parent’s religious liberty claims, the court said that under Employment Division v. Smith “this case would easily be dismissed” because “the defendants have an interest in promoting tolerance, including for the children (and parents) of gay marriages.” Even under a more stringent religious liberty test, “The fact that a school promotes tolerance of different sexual orientations and gay marriage when such tolerance is anathema to some religious groups does not constitute targeting.” To the court there was no constitutional issue raised by the school’s exposure of the young children to discussions of same-sex marriage because “[e]xposure to the materials in dispute here will not automatically and irreversibly prevent the parents from raising Jacob and Joey in the religious belief that gay marriage is immoral. Nor is there a criminal statute involved, or any other punishment imposed on the parents if they choose to educate their children in other ways.”
posted by William Duncan at 2:43 PM | link

Barbara Dafoe Whitehead on Juno

In the latest Commonweal, here.
posted by maggie at 12:31 PM | link

Israeli Legislature to Vote on Non-Religious Marriage

From "Knesset to vote on non-religious marriage," Ynetnews, February 12, 2008:

The Knesset is expected to vote Wednesday in a preliminary reading on a bill submitted by the Yisrael Beiteinu faction, suggesting that couple wishing to be recognized by the State will be registered as married even if they were not wed by an Orthodox rabbi in Israel.

According to the bill, such couples will be officially registered as married and will receive rights reserved for married couples without undergoing a religious ceremony...

posted by Imapp Staff at 11:02 AM | link

Major New Study: Dads Do Matter

Link to journal article here.

From "Dads DO matter: Why children brought up by BOTH parents are happier and more successful," Daily Mail, February 13, 2008:

Children behave better, learn more and are better adjusted if their father is involved in their lives, a major study shows.

Researchers found that a good relationship between youngsters and fathers had a positive effect that could last for two decades.

In low-income homes, regular contact was also seen to lead to less juvenile crime.

Anna Sarkadi, of Sweden's Uppsala University, where the research was carried out, said: "Our detailed 20-year review shows that overall, children reap positive benefits if they have active and regular engagement with a father figure.

"We found various studies that showed that children who had positively involved father figures were less likely to smoke and get into trouble with the police, achieved better levels of education and developed good friendships with children of both sexes.

"Long-term benefits included women who had better relationships with partners and a greater sense of mental and physical well-being at the age of 33 if they had a good relationship with their father at 16.”...

posted by Imapp Staff at 10:51 AM | link

Parents Influence College Kids' Risky Behavior

From "Parents Still Influence College Kids' Risky Behavior," Newswise, February 8, 2008:

Newswise — New research shows that parents influence their child’s likelihood of involvement with drugs, alcohol and risky sexual activity even after their child leaves for college.

In an upcoming issue of the Journal of Youth and Adolescence, Brigham Young University family scientist Laura Walker’s study found that parents’ knowledge or awareness of what’s going on in their child’s life at college is associated with fewer risky behaviors.

Specifically, students who said their fathers were in the loop had a lower likelihood of doing drugs or engaging in risky sexual behaviors. When mothers were in the know, students were less likely to drink alcohol.

The protective effect of mothers’ awareness was more pronounced when the students also felt close to their mom. Under those circumstances, the researchers found that students were less likely to be involved in any of the three risk behavior categories studied: drugs, alcohol and risky sexual activity...

posted by Imapp Staff at 10:31 AM | link

UK MP: Pakistani Marriages Between Cousins Lead to Birth Defects

From "Cryer warns of risks of cousins marrying," Reuters UK, February 11, 2008:

LONDON (Reuters) - The Pakistani community should reduce the number of marriages between cousins to lower the risk of having babies with birth defects, an MP said on Monday.

[The Labour Party MP] said British Pakistanis who marry first cousins are "in denial" about the risk of birth defects, and community leaders should point out the risks...

Research done by the BBC in 2005 showed that people of Pakistani origin account for 3.4 percent of British births but 30 percent of babies with genetic defects known as recessive disorders.

Marriages between first cousins are legal in Britain and more common in the British Pakistani than the wider population...

posted by Imapp Staff at 10:20 AM | link

"My Saudi Valentine"

From "My Saudi Valentine" by Rajaa Alsanea, NY Times, February 13, 2008:

...Where I come from, dating in the Western sense is not acceptable, either socially or religiously...

[M]ost young women prefer to get to know the guy through accepted channels like the Internet, friends, family or the phone.

[B]efore the Internet and cellphones...[g]uys took their chances by handing out their land-line numbers to any nearby female, just in case there was an eligible young woman hidden under that shapeless abaya and niqab...

All these strictures do not mean that Saudis don’t long for love. Songs and novels show how affectionate and passionate Saudi men and women can be. It’s just that some believe love is that warm feeling a couple develop after their parents have arranged a match and the marriage contract has been signed...

posted by Imapp Staff at 8:51 AM | link

AZ Redo on SSM Amendment

From "Legislators push ban on gay marriage," Arizona Republic, February 12, 2008:

Voters may be asked to ban gay marriage in Arizona . . . again.

The leaders of both the House and the Senate introduced measures Monday to place a constitutional amendment on the fall ballot that defines marriage as the union of one man and one woman.

The move, which has garnered widespread Republican support, follows the stunning defeat of a marriage amendment here in 2006, when Arizona became the first state in the nation to reject an anti-gay-marriage ballot measure.

. . . This measure leaves out the most controversial piece of the 2006 initiative, which also blocked governments from recognizing any similar relationship to marriage, such as domestic partnerships. If passed, hundreds of gay and straight government employees in Phoenix, Scottsdale, Pima County and elsewhere would have lost benefits for their domestic partners.

House Speaker Jim Weiers, R-Phoenix, said that is why the new measure should pass. The constitutional amendment is narrowly focused on marriage and mimics what is already on the books as state law . . .

posted by Imapp Staff at 9:25 AM | link

Child-Man in the Promised Land

From "Child-Man in the Promised Land" by Kay S. Hymowitz, City Journal, Winter 2008:

...Not so long ago, the average mid-twentysomething had achieved most of adulthood’s milestones—high school degree, financial independence, marriage, and children. These days, he lingers—happily—in a new hybrid state of semi-hormonal adolescence and responsible self-reliance...

Some call this new period “emerging adulthood,” others “extended adolescence”; David Brooks recently took a stab with the “Odyssey Years,” a “decade of wandering.”...

Consider: in 1970, 69 percent of 25-year-old and 85 percent of 30-year-old white men were married; in 2000, only 33 percent and 58 percent were, respectively. And the percentage of young guys tying the knot is declining as you read this. Census Bureau data show that the median age of marriage among men rose from 26.8 in 2000 to 27.5 in 2006—a dramatic demographic shift for such a short time period...

[T]he problem with child-men is that they’re not very promising husbands and fathers....

Naturally, women wonder: How did this perverse [child-man] creature come to be?...

posted by Imapp Staff at 11:02 AM | link