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This paper problematizes certain topics related to female monasticism in the Serbian Orthodox Church. Since the mere phenomenon of female monasticism and the practice present in this region are very rich, we were inclined to focus on specific aspects of the monastic life: the identity of nuns and the relation towards marriage and family. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rapid developments in reproductive technologies and shifts away from traditional religious commitments have led to significant changes in how marriage and the family are understood. Family building in the twenty-first century has become ever more post-modern: morality as it applies to family life has been fully deflated into various and diverse lifestyle choices. For many, Christian moral teachings regarding sex, reproduction, and marriage appear old fashioned and unenlightened. Such norms prudishly prevent persons from engaging in sexual relations, marriages, and divorces, as well as manipulating nature in ways that each finds pleasurable or otherwise individually fulfilling. Indeed, progressive activists have long endeavored to redefine the family, so that it would cease to be thought of as created through the monogamous and life-long bond of the marriage of husband and wife. The hope has been to bring other living arrangements, such as same sex partnerships and single motherhood, as well as artificial reproduction techniques and abortion, fully into the social mainstream. From homosexual marriage, to commercial surrogacy, preimplantation genetic diagnosis, in vitro fertilization and abortion, each author in this number of Christian Bioethics, diagnoses the growing cleft between the Traditionally Christian and modern society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents the author's views on the experiences of people living within Christian families with regard to the Catholic Church's two-part synod on family life to be held in late 2015. The liturgy of the Lord's Supper on Maunday Thursday is explored as well as the importance of the experience of families for active sharing. Also discussed are Jesus Christ's commitment to the poor and powerless, the failure of the Church to change its teaching on marriage, and celebrity weddings.

The article discusses panorama of marriage and family in Orthodox Church. Topics discussed include similarities and differences between the Catholic and Orthodox perspectives of the nuptial rite and of marriage, aim of Christian marriage and family is salvation, and marital relationship between man and a woman.

Leading scholars of marital processes strongly recommend supplementing the current focus on marital conflict to include research on transformative processes. This qualitative study examines the connection between religion and the transformative processes of commitment and coping in marriage. The sample for this study includes 184 married couples (N = 368 individuals), making it far larger than most in-depth, qualitative interview-based studies. Participants included Christians, Jews, and Muslims with an over sampling of minorities and immigrant families living in all eight regions of the United States. For several decades studies have shown a largely positive correlation between (a) religiosity and marital commitment and (b) religiosity and (generally) positive coping, but with little explanation regarding how and why. Findings of this study indicate that there are specific religious beliefs and practices related to how these couples approach their marriages-including several that relate to the two transformative processes of commitment and coping. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Brazilian Pentecostals are establishing new transnational Christian connections in Africa. Focusing on Mozambique, this paper examines the specific logic of cultural mixing that is emerging in the South-South contact of African and Brazilian Pentecostals. This South-South connection is based on a particular framing of the transatlantic history in Afro-Brazilian concepts of evil, such as macumba and feitiçaria. The South-South transnational features of Afro-Brazilian Pentecostalism enhance a need to spiritually scrutinize, combat and transcend aspects of 'African culture' in the reproductive sphere of marriage, sexuality, family, money and work. Upwardly mobile Mozambican women, who are conquering new cultural positions, are finding this South-South transnational Pentecostal space attractive. Afro-Brazilian Pentecostalism and upwardly mobile women find and reinforce each other in their capacities to challenge and move frontiers in the national sphere around reproductive issues. However, the powerful atmosphere of conquest that South-South Pentecostalism consequently creates has to be carefully manoeuvred by the women to not let their accusations of feitiçaria rise against themselves. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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While historians of South Asia have examined in elaborate detail critiques of sati and child marriage in the Hindu community, a similar approach to Muslim familial reform also needs serious attention. By investigating discourses on the question of polygyny1, this paper is an attempt in this direction. In the light of these discourses, the paper argues that polygyny, influenced by modern sensibilities of reform and social change, underwent different interpretations during the colonial period. The debate on polygyny was not homogenous and uniform and research reveals a plurality of viewpoints on the subject. The argument was often based on an assumption of sexual difference which, in some cases, emphasized the infertility and reproductive incapacity of the first wife, and in others, presented an idealization of domestic ideology where the second wife made the ‘perfect’ home. Simultaneously, there were also strong critiques of polygyny by women writers who underscored the misery of the first wife. These debates do not necessarily settle the question in favour of a particular position, but reflect a conversation held on marriage, children and family, and express how love, conjugality and affection were narrated in the public sphere. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Online English-language newspapers in Yemen are considered official windows through which Yemen is portrayed to the global world. Investigating the representation of a Yemeni social event (the Nojoud's phenomenon) to foreign readers, this paper specifically aims to identify the discourses that the newspaper texts draw upon in representing 'early marriage' in Yemen. Besides, it investigates the assumptions that the texts presuppose and the way the social actors are identified. As a qualitative analytic research, Fairclough's critical discourse analysis as well as Kress and van Leeuwen's (critical) multimodal discourse analysis employed the micro and macro discourse analysis of the online version of Yemen Times newspaper. Data analysis reveals that the selected texts draw upon a number of foregrounded and backgrounded discourses in representing 'early marriage' in Yemen including backgrounded Yemeni legal discourse, backgrounded Sharia discourse of 'maturity', and fore grounded discourse of minimum age of 18, and fore grounded discourse of sexual abuse. Simultaneously, it is uncovered that the texts presuppose many assumptions such as 'marriage in Islam', 'puberty' and the 'age documentation' in Yemen. While some of the important social actors are absent, the main social actors in the represented case are mainly identified by 'overwordings' of the age. This paper ends by offering several suggestions and recommendations that would benefit EFL (Yemeni) students, teachers, curriculum designers, journalists and translators when dealing with English-language texts reporting on local phenomenon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the ideological stance of former U.S. President George W. Bush on marriage. In January 2004, he called on the Congress to pass a federal marriage amendment to prevent same-sex marriages because he believes that freedom does not include redefinition of marriage. He added that marriage between a man and woman is a fundamental human institution and the basis of an orderly society. Responding to rulings that approved same-sex marriage, he said that courts have important role in respecting or disrespecting the sanctity of marriage.

Accepting Javier Garrido's proposal in his book «Proceso humano y gracia de Dios» (1996) the present paper emphasizes certain key points that allow us to understand the matrimonial reality as a process of personalization of the couple and of transsignifying the personal crises and consequently those of the couple, facilitating their transformation into opportunities for consolidating matrimonial and family life. Thus the founding essence of the sacramental character of the marriage bond is attained. The vital process of each person is changing in the way of thinking and acting, both humanly and spiritually, and is essential for acquiring authenticity and human realization. Each human being possesses in itself different perspectives, from which one takes position in face of the world and from which one can overcome different moments of crisis or circumstances that allow to humanize oneself or others according to the way they are assumed. With this proposal of transformation we seek that man and woman enter into a progressive process of assuming the reality of their lives, such as it is, in order to grow in liberty and coherence in the way everyone thinks, feels and wishes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rather than a socioanthropological category, family is a human experience founded on the quality of the relations between its members, open to transcendence and capable of transsignifying, that is to say, of being sign and instrument of God's love and salvation. The intention of this paper is to deal with the personal and social dimension of the human experience of family, and at the same time with its sacramental and ecclesial dimension as a sacrament of salvation, to which correspond the titles that the Church Magisterium applies to the family: "intimate partnership of married life and love" (GS 48), "the first and vital cell of society" (FC 42), "a sanctuary of life" (CA 39), "image of Trinitarian life" (Puebla 582) and "domestic church" (LG 11). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presents a brochure on interfaith marriages between Christians and Muslims in Europe. Social conditions in Europe; Family and marriage in Islam; Pastoral work in interfaith marriages.

This paper attempts to explain how a religious ideology determines the nature of role relationships within the family. It is shown how 'Pativratya' an androcentric ideology rooted in Hinduism has gripped the minds of a people. The data for this study were collected through field research from a South Indian village. The finding is that Pativratya is built into the social structure and consequently women occupy a lower position in sexual hierarchy and are heirs to an unequal opportunity structure. Such a state of affairs is perpetuated over time through systematic socialization of men and women. In addition, women as mothers are coopted into the patriarchal family to train the next generation according to the tenets of Pativratya. Impact of this ideology in a cross cultural context is examined through a study conducted in a Canadian metropolitan area. Preliminary analysis of this data shows that equal access to opportunity structure and exposure to multiple ideologies including egalitarianism leads to egalitarian relationships between the sexes. The implications of such a finding is that the power of Pativratya can erode under certain specified conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A reprint of the article "Family Values and Islam," by Asghar Ali Engineer, which appeared in the January 7, 2011 issue of "Dawn," is presented. It discusses moral values regarding romantic relationships and families in Islam. The author criticizes extramarital sexual relationships, claiming they are formed out of a desire for pleasure rather than for the purpose of responsibly raising a family. It is suggested that equality should exist between husbands and wives.

The article presents a statement pertaining to the values of marriage from the Standing Committee of the Episcopal Conference of Chile, which was delivered on November 2nd, 2009. The statement discusses legislation relating to same-sex unions, as well as presenting questions on the morality of couples living out of wedlock. The devaluation of marriage through same-sex marriage legislation is a primary concern of the committee, and the statement asks elected officials to establish law that is for the common good of Chilean citizens. The Virgin of Carmen, queen and patron of Chile, is called on by the committee for the protection of the Chilean family.