LYCOS RETRIEVER 
Marriage: Societies
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Marriage has traditionally been a prerequisite for starting a family, which usually serves as the building block of a community and society. Thus, marriage not only serves the interests of the two individuals, but ... the interests of their children and the society of which they are a part.
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Marriage lay at the heart of early modern society. It created the basic social unit, the household: the site of childrearing, economic production, and mutual care and affection. Marriage tied families together in economic and social networks and, at higher social levels, cemented political alliances and even royal dynasties. It was ... a major means of transmitting wealth through dowries, the resources that a woman brought to a marriage. Moreover in contemporary eyes marriage had the moral functions of channeling sexuality, creating new Christians, and supporting the divinely ordained patriarchal, or male-dominated, order.
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Marriage remains important as the socially sanctioned bond in a sexual relationship. Marriage is usually understood as a male-female relationship designed to produce children and successfully socialize them. Historically, most societies have allowed some form of polygamy. The West is a major exception. Europe, the United States and Canada have defined themselves as monogamous cultures. This was in part a Germanic cultural tradition, a requirement of Christianity (after the sixth century AD), and a mandate of Roman Law.
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The Committee on Marriage and Family Life was established in 1987 to assist the Bishops' Conference to respond to contemporary issues facing marriage and family life. It does so by undertaking educational and pastoral initiatives in collaboration with the Pontifical Council for the Family, other Conference committees, diocesan and parish leadership networks, and ecclesial movements, national groups and organizations. Its efforts are directed by the vision expressed in Gaudium et Spes, Pope John Paul II’s Familiaris Consortio, and the U.S. Bishops’ Plan of Pastoral Action for Family Ministry (1978), A Family Perspective in Church and Society (1988) and Follow the Way of Love (1994).
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The campaign is part of a multi-year National Pastoral Initiative for Marriage of the U.S. Catholic bishops to convey the meaning and value of married life for the church and for society. The initiative will provide guidance and resources, including a pastoral letter, to promote, strengthen, sustain, and restore marriages.
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