Traditional Marriage

I felt it necessary to post some information about the importance of defending traditional marriage. As a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I believe that traditional marriage is a divine institution. When there is a loving mother and father that care for and love their children, it is a greatest source of happiness and joy that there can possibly be in this life. I read through an article put together by the Church titled "The Divine Institution of Marriage." This document lays out the importance of traditional marriage and the effects legalizing same-sex marriage would do to this great nation. I came up with a long list of reasons to oppose same-sex marriage:

• "Marriage is sacred, ordained of God from before the foundation of the world."
• "Marriage between a man and a woman is central to the plan of salvation."
• "Only a man and a woman together have the natural biological capacity to conceive children."
• "Marriage is not primarily a contract between individuals to ratify their affections and provide for mutual obligations."
• "Marriage and family are vital instruments for rearing children and teaching them to become responsible adults."
• "Marriage [is] an essential institution in preserving social stability and perpetuating life itself."
• "A husband and a wife do not receive…benefits to elevate them above any other two people who may share a residence or social tie, but rather in order to preserve, protect, and defend the all-important institutions of marriage and family."
• "Co-habitation under any guise or title is not a sufficient reason for defining new forms of marriage."
• "Extensive studies have shown that in general a husband and wife united in a loving, committed marriage provide the optimal environment for children to be protected, nurtured, and raised…because of the differing strengths that a father and a mother, by virtue of their gender, bring to the task."
• "Gender differentiated parenting is important for human development and that the contribution of fathers to childrearing is unique and irreplaceable."
• "Constitutes a serious threat to marriage and family."
• "Children and families are to be protected and moral values propagated."
• "Traditional marriage is essential to society as a whole, and especially to its children."
• "Legalizing same-sex marriage will affect a wide spectrum of government activities and policies."
• "Societal recognition of same-sex marriage cannot be justified simply on the grounds that it provides self-fulfillment to its partners, for it is not the purpose of government to provide legal protection to every possible way in which individuals may pursue fulfillment."
• "Same-sex marriage likely will erode the social identity, gender development, and moral character of children."
• "It will create serious clashes between the agenda of the secular school system and the right of parents to teach their children traditional standards of morality."
• "The family has served as an essential bulwark of individual liberty [and the] government does not have the right to intervene in the rearing and moral education of children in the home."
• "Strong families are … vital for political freedom."

I'm sure there are more reasons but these were the most important to me. All in the list are direct quotes from the article listed above. The information in that article express my view better than I can. It is crucial that we defend traditional in every way we can. California will have that opportunity this November when they vote Yes on Proposition 8 which will amend the California Constitution,defining marriage as only being between one man and one woman. The "Yes on 8" campaign is backed by many organizations that fight for traditional values, which includes many religious organizations, including by not limited to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. This effort relies on volunteers and donations to continue it's fight against same-sex marriage. My family has donated and I hope many more outside of California will do the same. Here are a couple of videos that they are airing on TV in the state:





I urge you do to all you can to help this proposition pass or as is stated in "The Family: A Proclamation to the World," that "the disintegration of the family will bring upon individuals, communities, and nations the calamities foretold by ancient and modern prophets."

For more information on this important issue, check the information below:

• Protect Marriage - Yes on 8
• The Divine Institution of Marriage
• Same-Sex Marriage and Proposition 8
• The Family:A Proclamation to the World