Transcript Christianity - RevisionWorld

Christianity
Family Relationships
Contents
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Family Life
Marriage
Breakdown of Marriage
Divorce
Remarriage
Annulment
Family Life
• Family members must take care of each other.
– They must bring up children to be good citizens
in a loving and caring environment.
– They must take care of the elderly and sick
members of their family.
– They must take care of each other in good times
and in bad.
Family Life
• ‘Honour your father and your mother’ (One of the
Ten Commandments)
• 1 Timothy 5:8 ‘If anyone does not take care of his
relatives, especially the members of his own
family, he has denied the faith and is worse than
an unbeliever.’
• ‘Children, it is your Christian duty to obey your
parents always, for that is what pleases God.
Parents, do not irritate your children, or they will
become discouraged.’ (Colossians 3:20-21)
Family Life
• If Christians want support in their family life, they
might join the Mothers’ Union.
• You do not have to be a mother – or even a parent
– to be part of the Mothers’ Union.
• They provide:
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Babysitting for single parents
Counselling groups
Support for new parents
Prayers for families.
Marriage
• Marriage was part of God’s plan from the start – Genesis
2:24 ‘That is why a man leaves his father and mother and
is united with his wife and they become one.’
• Jesus confirms this teaching in Mark chapter 10.
• Married love needs to be a reflection of God’s love, which
is permanent, life-giving and faithful. In the same way,
couples need to stay together, to have children (if possible)
and to remain exclusive to each other.
• Christians believe that marriage is the correct environment
for sexual relationships.
Breakdown of Marriage
• Marriages break down for a variety of reasons.
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Money problems
Infidelity
Unemployment
Incompatibility
Cruelty
• All Christians accept that it is sometimes
necessary for marriages to break up when they
cannot be fixed – this is known as ‘irretrievable
breakdown of marriage’.
Breakdown of Marriage
• Christians can turn to organisations such as
‘Marriage Care’.
– They offer guidance for couples who are
planning to get married
– They also provide help, support and counselling
to those who are having difficulties in their
relationships.
Divorce
• Divorce is primarily a legal thing.
Sometimes for financial reasons a divorce is
necessary, if there had been an irretrievable
breakdown of marriage.
• The moral issues come with remarriage.
Jesus taught that if you remarry then you
commit adultery on your first partner.
Remarriage
• The Roman Catholic Church does not allow
remarriage.
• The Church of England teaches that marriage is
for life. If someone wants to remarry, it is allowed
at the priest or vicar’s discretion – for example if
that person’s previous partner was unfaithful.
• Some other Protestant Churches believe that it is
not death that ends a marriage but the death of the
love between the couple.
Annulment
• The Roman Catholic Church allows annulment in
certain cases.
• Annulment is a statement that the marriage never
took place – the vows were not meant.
• For example, if the couple intended not to have
children and used contraception, or if one member
of the partnership did not understand the vows.
Summary
• Family life is key to all Christians.
• Marriage is seen as the correct context to have children.
• Sometimes marriages break down but they can be
supported.
• If separation is necessary sometimes legal divorce might
have to take place.
• Most Christians do not allow remarriage, except in
exceptional circumstances.
• Roman Catholics allow annulment in certain circumstances
– a statement that the marriage did not take place and so
any further marriage is considered the first marriage.