The First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (or Mormon Church) defined the family in “The Family: A Proclamation to the World” in 1995 (Ensign, Nov. 1995, 102.) The proclamation was inspired in part by the passionate controversy that has been brewing worldwide for some time now about the importance, or unimportance, of the traditional family. Mormon beliefs include the family as a conventional unit with a man and a woman as husband and wife, hopefully blessed with children.
Recently, a growing and abundant body of academic research has begun to support the Church’s belief that the traditional family is more than an out-dated formula, but of true advantage to the well-being of men and women throughout the world and across all race and socioeconomic classes.
These findings were presented in an article entitled “Happiness, Health and Marriage” (Elizabeth VanDenBerghe, Ensign, Aug 2001, 29.” The article states:
“Findings reaffirm that marriage relationships need to be built on righteous principles—“a solemn responsibility to love and care for each other,” in the words of the proclamation. It is clear that marriages based on righteous principles are the kind of marriages that lead to lasting happiness.”
While the statistics support male/female traditional marriages, it doesn’t mean that a loving and committed husband and wife will escape the trials and tribulations of life. Life happens to all of us. The meaning behind the numbers though, seem to say that if we are happily married we are more likely to weather the storms of life with a better outlook and outcome.
The real question for me, though, is why is this so? One psychology professor maintains that the intimate friendship a husband and wife share is a safety net of sorts, allowing for all of our foibles and weaknesses and all of our challenges to be shared and vented and dealt with in a safe and understanding environment. Other specialists support the idea that spouses help each other take care of themselves so healthier eating habits, exercise and sleep patterns are achieved and maintained.
The article was lengthy and presents in great detail the many ways in which traditional marriages are seen to be of greater benefit to individual happiness over less traditional relationships. I encourage you to read the article http://www.mormon.org/mormonorg/engif you are interested in viewing the citations and reading more. Through it all I find it very interesting that the research shows a trend that people are much more likely to flourish and find happiness in a healthy heterosexual marriage.
Strong, happy marriages are the glue that holds our society together. Happy marriages create healthy, capable individuals who feel good about themselves and their ability to contribute in a positive manner to their community. Healthy marriages raise children with strong moral values and who grow to be effective and contributing members of our society. Value your marriage, nurture it. You’ll be doing good not only for yourself, your spouse and your children … but for the world around you, too!
