Carol Soelberg
Cohabitation on the Rise Worldwide -- at the Expense of Marriage
What's wrong with cohabitation? This question will be addressed later this week at the World Congress of Families IV in Warsaw, Poland. In addition, UFI has carefully studied this question and devoted its latest publication -- "Guide to Family Issues: Cohabitation vs. Marriage" -- to the topic of cohabitation.
The frequency of cohabitation -- non-married couples living together -- has increased worldwide in recent decades, including a 10-fold increase in the United States since 1960. Divorce rates are declining while cohabitation rates continue to rise. Despite its growing frequency and acceptance, the practice of cohabiting among unmarried couples is a counterfeit form of marriage that does not serve the best interests of adults, children or society. With the state of marriage as a backdrop, United Families International announces this week the debut of the publication: "Guide to Family Issues: Cohabitation vs. Marriage."
In settling for cohabitation, society erodes the ideal of marriage and offsets the benefits of marriage and parenting. Social engineers around the world are breaking down the family by de-valuing marriage, parental rights and the worth of mothers and fathers. Many well-meaning mayors, city council members, lawmakers, universities and private businesses are unwittingly defining family downward as they incorporate domestic partner benefits. In the process, they encourage cohabitation and its attendant ills while diminishing the institution of traditional marriage.
Relationships sealed by the commitments of marriage are more likely to last, transmit positive values, inculcate personal ethics and strengthen the interpersonal bonds between a man and a woman. A committed marriage relationship is more likely to produce healthy, productive, responsible children -- the most important resource of a nation.
Marriage tends to civilize men, channeling sexual activity toward one woman; obligating them to live and sacrifice for family; and providing the deepest levels of trust, reliability, stability, joy and affirmation.
Women tend to fare better in marriage than in cohabitation. Married women are more likely to receive the provision of intimacy and a secure home, as well as a partner:
- who honors, respects and cherishes them;
- who assists in the care, nurturing and safeguarding of the children they create together; and
- with whom she can model the responsibilities of citizenship.
Read UFI's Guide to Family Issues: Cohabitation vs. Marriage: Part I | Part II
UFI and Coalition Allies Spar with Anti-Family/Anti-Life Opponents
UFI's Director of International Policy Marcia Barlow reports that the recent International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD), at the United Nations, turned out to be yet another replay in the ongoing struggle over outcome document language fought between our pro-family/pro-life coalition and abortion/anti-family advocates.
Pro-abortion delegates tried to insert four different references regarding "sexual and reproductive health services" into the ICPD document -- language they hope to use to promote abortion worldwide. Fortunately, their attempts were unsuccessful. At the conclusion of the conference, a representative of the United Nations Population Fund stated that sexual and reproductive health services [abortion] are essential to the success of developing countries and that "he would personally never quit until that became a reality." United Families International will continue to work to make sure this man's dream of worldwide legalized abortion never happens.
Mrs. Barlow also gives us this insight into the workings of the UN: "One of the 'shake your head in disbelief' moments was when the European Union opposed language that might indicate that their countries were struggling with below-replacement-fertility levels." In light of the fact that most developed countries have fertility rates well below 2.1 -- the rate by which a nation sustains itself -- that would seem a logical and important topic for a conference on population and development. Mrs. Barlow continued: "It appears that some of the more liberal European countries and their allies refuse to acknowledge the obvious: their anti-family and population control programs have been so effective that their nations' native populations are dying off. There may be few Germans or French left in 50 years, but, no, we won't allow it to be talked about." Just one more inconsistent and destructive ideology emanating out of the UN.
Warmly,
Carol Soelberg, President
United Families International
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