Traditional Marriage

Sammy-San

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Legally, marriage is a form of contract. It's a special contract, but that's essentially what it is. Because of that contract, the government is willing to enforce certain benefits, rights and privileges.

You are welcome to attribute any further meaning to your marriage beyond that. Most people do it seems. However, specifically what the law describes it as, it's a form of relationship contract.

What does joining together mean?
Marriage.Traditionally, marriage took place through an arrangement made for children by adults when the two Children were young. Since the rigors of life could not guarantee the eventual joining of these individuals, it was not uncommon for parents to create such an arrangement just prior to the marriage. Men usually moved to the village of the wife's parents. The duration of this depended on the social position and economic circumstances of the two families and on the overall availability of either eligible males or females. Polygamous unions existed, and there could be unions that represented significant age differences between the partners.

Marriage and family - Baffinland Inuit
 
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PsychoSarah

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Usually a church will want you to be a part of the church before they marry you. How ever if a non religious person can find a church that is willing to marry them without being a member, no law will stop you; but the law won't a church to marry you either.
-_- who says people need to get married through a church? Marriage is, first and foremost, a social contract between those getting married. Any religion attached to it is the extra. People don't even have to have affiliations with any religious group to get a licence to marry people. You can also just fill out a legal form and not even have a wedding, if so desired.

If you take away the social contract portions of marriage, then you are taking away from its initial purpose.
 
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SilverBear

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I guess the same argument could be made for incest, polygamy, and every other relationship that isn't blessed by the Government via marriage.
I think queller asked you an excellent question, would you answer it?
 
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Cute Tink

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What do you mean?

You just asked me about what "joining together" means as though you expected it to have some deep meaning rather than taking it at face value. I mean that as no insult to you. As Freud is quoted as saying, "sometimes a cigar is just a cigar".
 
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Ken-1122

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Why should a non-religious couple need to go to a religious organization to get married? Seems like nothing more than a way to force religious beliefs on someone else, in violation of the First Amendment.

The First Amendment (freedom of religion) doesn't apply to those who choose to stay away from religion. But if the Government gets out of the marriage business, who else are people going to go to to get married if not the religious?
 
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Queller

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The First Amendment (freedom of religion) doesn't apply to those who choose to stay away from religion.
But if marriage is only a religious institution then those who want to partake of it have no choice but come to religion.

But if the Government gets out of the marriage business, who else are people going to go to to get married if not the religious?
Exactly my point. Why should someone who is non-religious be forced to go to a religious venue to get married?

ETA: PsychoSarah explained it much better than I did. Marriage is, at it's base, a social contract. The religious aspects are additional and not required for everyone. On what basis do you justify removing the social contract aspect of marriage?
 
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Ken-1122

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-_- who says people need to get married through a church? Marriage is, first and foremost, a social contract between those getting married. Any religion attached to it is the extra.
But if you take away the social contract of marriage, all you are left with is the religious aspects of marriage.
People don't even have to have affiliations with any religious group to get a licence to marry people. You can also just fill out a legal form and not even have a wedding, if so desired.
People can get social contracts between each other without calling it a marriage.
If you take away the social contract portions of marriage, then you are taking away from its initial purpose.
Are you suggesting marriage was a secular institution before it became a religious one?
 
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Ken-1122

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But if marriage is only a religious institution then those who want to partake of it have no choice but come to religion.

Exactly my point. Why should someone who is non-religious be forced to go to a religious venue to get married?
Think of it this way; if the Government got out of the marriage business, why would a non religious person even want to get married?
 
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Queller

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Think of it this way; if the Government got out of the marriage business, why would a non religious person even want to get married?
As PsychoSarah stated, it is inherently a social contract.

On what basis do you justify removing the social contract aspect?
 
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Ken-1122

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As PsychoSarah stated, it is inherently a social contract.
That doesn't mean it should remain a social contract.
On what basis do you justify removing the social contract aspect?
Because with the Government involved, married people get benefits at the expense of those who are not married. I consider this unfair.
 
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Queller

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That doesn't mean it should remain a social contract.
It doesn't mean it shouldn't either.

Because with the Government involved, married people get benefits at the expense of those who are not married. I consider this unfair.
So what? If only religious people can get married then that is unfair as well.
 
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Ken-1122

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It doesn't mean it shouldn't either.

So what? If only religious people can get married then that is unfair as well.
Is it also unfair that only religious people get baptized? Is it also unfair that only religious people go to confession? Or have Communion?
 
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Queller

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I'm afraid you've got it upside down, inside out, and backwards. By my logic, it is not wrong for only religious people to participate in religious activities.
Only because you have unfairly shrunk the playing field so that only the religious may participate.

Marriage has never been solely a religious activity, not even in the Bible.
 
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