Getting Married in Church - A Church of England Wedding - faith, hope and love.

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• Your Marriage
  • What's so special about marriage?
  • Marriage boosts happiness
  • Marriage is good for your health and extends your life
  • Marriage provides more and better sex
  • Marriage helps to keep you together
  • Marriage is good for your children
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What's so special about marriage?

• Marriage is a very ancient idea. The Bible suggests it goes right back to Adam and Eve, who were 'made for each other' (Genesis 2). Jesus' teaching on marriage, as exclusive, unbreakable and forging a new family unit, drew on this original blueprint. And Jesus loved a good wedding: he turned water into wine at a wedding reception (John 2), his first recorded miracle. Even today, marriage exists in practically every country and culture on earth.
• So marriage has always been part of God’s good plan for us. And no wonder! A good marriage is healthy, freeing and life-giving, as you’ll discover as you read through this section.
• Christians believe that marriage is a gift from God. There is something in a public commitment of this magnitude that has a spiritual element to it and which can transform a relationship to a new and deeper level.

• God intended marriage to offer the right place to grow in love and support for each other, fulfil our sexuality and provide a stable and secure environment for bringing up children. Marriage can change us for the better, and as we change, our marriage grows along with us.
• In the marriage ceremony, a couple makes a public declaration of lifelong commitment to love each other. A commitment, by its nature, is a challenge. Saying ‘I will’ to those vows obliges you to forgive and be forgiven. It will be tough at times! So marriage is a risk, but a risk worth taking. There’s plenty of evidence to show married couples are more likely to be healthy, wealthy and wise.
• Occasionally we all fall short of God’s ideal for love, but a degree of conflict in a marriage is healthy if dealt with appropriately. Obviously conflict that results in domestic abuse* in any of its forms is unacceptable, contrary to God’s will and the wedding vows. Christians believe marriage is a gift from God and should mirror of the love God has for all of us – love that remains true, faithful, protective and respectful.

(*If you would like to read more on the Church of England's response and guidelines on domestic abuse please see this paper.)

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