Why Marriage is Essential

The Proclamation tells us that "marriage is ordained of God".  What does ordained mean?  Webster's dictionary definition is: to officially establish or order (something). This tells us that God was the first to establish marriage upon the earth.  He did so with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden when God said it was, "not good that man should be alone." (Genesis 2:18)

According to Elder David A. Bednar, "Righteous marriage is a commandment and an essential step in the process of creating a loving family relationship that can be perpetuated beyond the grave."

He goes on to tell us, "Two compelling doctrinal reasons help us to understand why eternal marriage is essential to the Father’s plan.

Reason 1: The natures of male and female spirits complete and perfect each other, and therefore men and women are intended to progress together toward exaltation...Reason 2: By divine design, both a man and a woman are needed to bring children into mortality and to provide the best setting for the rearing and nurturing of children."

When talking about marriage, President Spencer W. Kimball said this, "may I say this is the word of the Lord. It is very, very serious, and there is nobody who should argue with the Lord. He made the earth; He made the people. He knows the conditions. He set the program, and we are not intelligent enough or smart enough to be able to argue Him out of these important things. He knows what is right and true.

We ask you to think of these things. Be sure that your marriage is right. Be sure that your life is right. Be sure that your part of the marriage is carried forward properly."

Marriage is a commitment to another person that helps us restrain our self-centeredness, our self-indulgence, and self-gratification.  I feel like in the world that we live in today, many people are too focused on SELF. Across all of America, marriage is being assailed and deemed as unnecessary. Marriage is a covenant not only between a man and a woman, but also a covenant with God.  The traditional marriage comprised of a man, woman and children has always been the foundation of every happy and healthy society. 

Elizabeth VanDenBerghe and Alan J. Hawkins tell us in chapter 7 of the book, Successful Marriages and Families tells us, "Yet contemporary culture, particularly in the United States, remains deeply afraid of limiting choices. Having it all and keeping your options open, just in case something better comes along, has become almost a mantra of modern life. But Stanley points out that 'loss of freedom outside of boundaries of the marriage union actually creates new opportunities for a profound level of freedom within them' (Scott Stanley, University of Denver, 2005). In other words, by giving up other choices in order to fully commit to marriage, spouses find that barriers within the relationship collapse and the couple feels a freedom unique to marriage - an emotional, psychological, and sexual safety unmatched by any other relationship."

Marriage is important.  Children have a right to be born within the bonds of matrimony.  Our marriage should be our biggest priority.  We should commit our selves 100% to our spouse and our families.  This is how God intended it to be.