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INSIGHT

Independent think-tank Civitas recently analysed more than 100 pieces of research on the effects of marital breakdown - and came to the same conclusion as many Christian ministries: that children who grow up with married parents tend to be happier, healthier and more likely to do well in life.
We asked David and Liz Percival of marriage support site 2-in-2-1.co.uk to assess 1) what difference this extensive survey might make to Government support for marriage, and 2) how churches should be responding and meeting the urgent need for marriage support in today's world
(Please note: our focus on this issue is intended to in no way downplay or sidestep the Church's responsibility for supporting single parents in bringing up their children. Christian Family Network is committed to supplying support, advice and resources for all Christian parents, in whatever circumstances.)

1 Civitas have produced an excellent sociological study of the evidence that children need both parents around, but we are not overly optimistic that the Government will take much notice.

It seems to ignore the evidence that married families fare best and has recently changed the criteria for funding from the Lord Chancellor. This was introduced by the previous Government who recognised the importance of marriage and wished to strengthen it.

The present Government has decided the money available should now be used also for general relationship support, for cohabiting couples, same-sex couples and parenting. This has diluted the impact on marriage support and fails to send the message that marriage is worth supporting.

We would like to see the Government acknowledge the fundamental differences between marriage and other long-term relationships, both in their outcomes and in the foundation on which they are built and to focus their funds into marriage support in the first instance. This would have a significant effect on the welfare of children throughout the nation.

2 The Church needs to get on and do this - the resources are available. Our website is full of information on these resources and organisations that can help churches serve their community by supporting marriage and family life.

Churches need to take seriously the role they can play in supporting marriage. How often is a sermon preached on marriage or a PCC meeting devoted to it? Some churches are working very hard to support family life and others are not. We would challenge churches to review what they are doing and to develop a policy.

There are numerous opportunities to work in schools, with secular groups locally, with registrars, with those in their own church. Some examples: Students Exploring Marriage is looking for couples to go into schools and be interviewed by students, Family Matters Institute and Community Family Trusts are working to bring together all interested parties in a community to support marriage and family life.

There are resources like the Marriage Course which can be run in parish, FOCCUS and Prepare/Enrich which can be used both for engaged and married couples, nationally-based events like Engaged Encounter, Marriage Encounter, Association for Marriage Enrichment, Mission to Marriage and many more where couples can get away from the parish to strengthen their marriage.

What works best is for churches to identify couples who might be willing to work in this area and to encourage them to take part in some form of marriage enrichment for themselves, so that they can form a core group to begin to build marriage support within the church. Finding couples to do this can be difficult as many (including church leaders themselves) are reluctant to explore their own relationship in this way or admit there is room for growth, but this is essential if they are going to be able to support other couples.

What could be the motivation for this work? Strong couples and families are a great resource in a church, and marriage work can also be a route for evangelism too reaching out into the local community.

A strong marriage is a sign to all of God's love at work.

What do you think? Use the Bulletin Board or the Mail Us button to send us your views

© Christian Family Network
is run by CPO, supported by
Care for the Family, Marriage Resource, Positive Parenting,
Care, Women Alive, Christian Herald and many others.


		INSIGHT Independent think-tank Civitas recently analysed more than 100 pieces of research on the effects of marital breakdown - and came to the same conclusion as many Christian ministries: that children who grow up with married parents tend to be happier, healthier and more likely to do well in life. We asked David and Liz Percival of marriage support site 2-in-2-1.co.uk to assess 1) what difference this extensive survey might make to Government support for marriage, and 2) how churches should be responding and meeting the urgent need for marriage support in today's world (Please note: our focus on this issue is intended to in no way downplay or sidestep the Church's responsibility for supporting single parents in bringing up their children. Christian Family Network is committed to supplying support, advice and resources for all Christian parents, in whatever circumstances.) 1 Civitas have produced an excellent sociological study of the evidence that children need both parents around, but we are not overly optimistic that the Government will take much notice. It seems to ignore the evidence that married families fare best and has recently changed the criteria for funding from the Lord Chancellor. This was introduced by the previous Government who recognised the importance of marriage and wished to strengthen it. The present Government has decided the money available should now be used also for general relationship support, for cohabiting couples, same-sex couples and parenting. This has diluted the impact on marriage support and fails to send the message that marriage is worth supporting. We would like to see the Government acknowledge the fundamental differences between marriage and other long-term relationships, both in their outcomes and in the foundation on which they are built and to focus their funds into marriage support in the first instance. This would have a significant effect on the welfare of children throughout the nation. 2 The Church needs to get on and do this - the resources are available. Our website is full of information on these resources and organisations that can help churches serve their community by supporting marriage and family life. Churches need to take seriously the role they can play in supporting marriage. How often is a sermon preached on marriage or a PCC meeting devoted to it? Some churches are working very hard to support family life and others are not. We would challenge churches to review what they are doing and to develop a policy. There are numerous opportunities to work in schools, with secular groups locally, with registrars, with those in their own church. Some examples: Students Exploring Marriage is looking for couples to go into schools and be interviewed by students, Family Matters Institute and Community Family Trusts are working to bring together all interested parties in a community to support marriage and family life. There are resources like the Marriage Course which can be run in parish, FOCCUS and Prepare/Enrich which can be used both for engaged and married couples, nationally-based events like Engaged Encounter, Marriage Encounter, Association for Marriage Enrichment, Mission to Marriage and many more where couples can get away from the parish to strengthen their marriage. What works best is for churches to identify couples who might be willing to work in this area and to encourage them to take part in some form of marriage enrichment for themselves, so that they can form a core group to begin to build marriage support within the church. Finding couples to do this can be difficult as many (including church leaders themselves) are reluctant to explore their own relationship in this way or admit there is room for growth, but this is essential if they are going to be able to support other couples. What could be the motivation for this work? Strong couples and families are a great resource in a church, and marriage work can also be a route for evangelism too reaching out into the local community. A strong marriage is a sign to all of God's love at work. What do you think? Use the Bulletin Board or the Mail Us button to send us your views © Christian Family Network is run by CPO, supported by Care for the Family, Marriage Resource, Positive Parenting, Care, Women Alive, Christian Herald and many others.