Before reading the articles and the textbook, I thought of marriage as kind of an emotional bond as well as a physical attraction to another person. However, I was completely aware that in other cultures marriages were arranged by the families or by persons other than the person actually waiting to be wed. Like the narrator in the article about the Indian family looking to marry off their son, I thought that it was cruel for parents to arrange the marriages of their children, but after reading the article and the claims made by the people whos marriages had been decided by the family, my thoughts changed and I found myself quite curious if maybe it is a better way of doing things. Either way I'm happy in my self-found relationship, but this selection did shed light on the possibility that it is not a bad idea to trust one's family to choose a proper family and spouse for their children to marry into.
Also, marriage seems to me after this reading to be something that is never the same from one culture to another. Princess Diana's marriage may have "included three persons," but had Prince Charles been any other heir to the throne, he would have included many more than that into his marriage. She was quite lucky to have him, but was not satisfied because of her own socialistic virtue. Now, Prince Charles marrying the woman he's really been in love with for 35 years according to the reading, but people will always view this now as a nuisance because they will side with Princess Diana.
Gay marriage is seen as sin and blasphemy in the majority of the world today, but certain states in our United States are beginning to obtain an understanding of the importance of love that they have allowed us to factor into marriage, and the fact that these people are just trying to marry who they love. Homosexuals are not trying to "redefine marriage," but they want their perspective of marriage to be accepted and "recognized" as marriage by the US government so they can live in peace without feeling abnormal or distant from typical society.
I had to agree with you on the arranged marriages in India, they do seem like a more positive solution after reading the article. If you have a good relationship with your family, hopefully they'll do a good job in selecting a spuse, and who knows, things might work out.
ReplyDeleteI didn't consider the royal marriage of Diana and Charles, I guess you could call that arranged as well. It was nice to see Kate and William fall in love and get married, that was a true fairy-tale story. :)
As a Roman Catholic, I believe we should “hate the sin, but love the sinner.”
ReplyDeleteEvery person, from the first moment of his life in the womb, has an inviolable dignity… because from all eternity God willed, loved, created, and redeemed that person and destined him for eternal happiness. This BY NO MEANS excludes homosexuals. Homosexuals are human beings, too, and need to be respected with dignity. I understand that some people are born with this mentality through no fault of their own, while others acquire it over a period of time. But they are still made in God’s image and likeness.
Still, there is a grave distinction between homosexual orientation (that is, finding members of the same gender sexually attractive) and homosexual acts (sexual activity between members of the same sex). Sex is intended for husband and wives… NOT unmarried persons, whether of the same or opposite sex.
A baby is the direct result of the two becoming one. It has aspects of both the father and the mother. Homosexual sex can never result in a baby. When two homosexuals marry each other, they completely twist and degrade the purpose of marriage, and create a living lie that can never come true. A marriage is supposed to be the loving bond between a man and woman that enables them to procreate children and help one another obtain eternal happiness in heaven. By marrying each other, homosexuals can neither create children, nor can they help each other reach heaven by perverted acts.
God is love, so He accepts everybody. But He does not accept everything a person does. We are supposed to love everyone… but if someone is sinning, we are not only allowed to call them to repentance, but are required to do so through the spirit of love and humility.