Just paper

[Jonni_Be_Good]

Hi, I was told today that marriage is just a bit of paper and that as long as you are faithful and fulfil your promise to each other, that’s what matters.
Where in the bible does it say you need to be married in church as I can’t seem to find it. I know the 6th commandment tells us about adultery but I wanted to try and give more evidence that marriage by a priest and in church is a must.

Thanks in advance.

 

[anruari]

Nowhere in the Bible does it say that you have to find everything in the Bible. In fact it explicitly says the opposite in several places. So let’s put that idea aside.

Now the Bible explicity prohibits fornication. Fornication is sex between 2 unmarried people

Jesus explicitly blesses a marriage as his first miracle
Jesus explicitly prohibits remarriage after divorce and States that marriage is a covenant made with God

however marriage is not done"by the priest" but by the spouses and witnessed on behalf of the Church by the priest.

It is inniatated by a covenant unbreakable set on vows which are defined by the competent authorities theft are the State and the Church.

The Bible clearly tells us in the gospels ands epistles of St Paul that both Church and secular authorities are to be obeyed.

 

[PietroPaolo]

Hi, I was told today that marriage is just a bit of paper and that as long as you are faithful and fulfil your promise to each other, that’s what matters.
Where in the bible does it say you need to be married in church as I can’t seem to find it. I know the 6th commandment tells us about adultery but I wanted to try and give more evidence that marriage by a priest and in church is a must.

Thanks in advance.

Marriage isn’t just “a piece a paper”. The “piece of paper” (the marriage cert) is accidental to marriage. The essence of marriage is the vows. The lifelong vows. Without those the “piece of paper” doesn’t make a marriage. Thus, homosexual couples, brothers and sisters, and the divorced cannot marry, even though they can get the “piece of paper.”

However, marriage is also not private. It’s public by nature. Thus, the vows cannot be merely privately exchanged sentiments. Thus, witnesses are needed for a couple to be married. This is why a “piece of paper” is issued, to attest to the public nature of marriage.

Where is the need for marriage in the Bible? All over the place!! In fact, the Bible begins with a marriage (Adam and Eve) in Genesis and ends with a marriage in Revelation (Jesus and the Church). One such place is the 10 commandments. We see there that sex outside of marriage is evil. Being faithful and fulfilling your promises are a part of marriage, but they are not identical with marriage.

hope that helps.

 

[Beryllos]

Hi, I was told today that marriage is just a bit of paper and that as long as you are faithful and fulfill your promise to each other, that’s what matters…

This is the idea that marriage involves just two people and their love. In fact, it also involves family, friends, community, church, and God. Through the Church we pray, together with family and friends, asking God to bless us and our marriage, and send his Spirit to assist and guide us toward a life of love and fidelity. One of the benefits of marriage is that it can help two individuals to break out of self-love and self-centeredness, bringing husband and wife closer to each other, and that is very good. Marriage can have an even higher purpose, that is, for us to bring out the best in each other, so that we may spread love beyond our marriage, to our children, neighbors, and communities, so that we may love and serve God better, so that we may come closer to God, and so that we may have eternal life in the glorious presence of God. Marriage is a lot more than two people loving each other.

 

[MJJean]

This is the idea that marriage involves just two people and their love. In fact, it also involves family, friends, community, church, and God.

And the law! That “piece of paper” confers legal obligations, rights, and benefits.

For example, when living together if one partner unexpectedly dies there is no Social Security or retirement benefits for the survivor of the pair. This can create great hardship. The loss of a home and possessions, just off the top of my head. When a couple is married, the surviving spouse has a right to collect Social Security, retirement benefits, and will be able to keep the marital home as well as property. Not to mention the tax benefits a married couple is entitled to that a couple living together are not.

Another example is when a couple lives together without marriage and one half of the pair decides to leave. Again, the remaining half of the pair could be in a very bad spot financially. But when a marriage breaks up there are legal protections that can be applied. The spouse who left can be asked to pay all or a portion of the bills in the marital home for a period of time to give the other party opportunity to get on their feet.

And what about health concerns? When a couple is married they can share health insurance benefits. If a spouse is unconscious and cannot make his/her own treatment decisions, their husband or wife can make those choices on their behalf. When an unmarried but living together individual is unable to make medical decisions the next of kin (blood family) are called in to do so and may entirely exclude the live in partner from the process.

What if there is a child born? When married, birth records and custody are already regulated. The couple legally shares custody and the father automatically goes on the birth record. For an unmarried couple, custody varies by state and additional paperwork must be filled out to put a father on the birth record.

Yup, not just a piece of paper.