'MARRIAGE' NEWS- December 2005: The REAL Proposal For Marriage magazine

"Marriage In The News" is not a representation of The Real Proposal magazine...

The news articles and features presented below are simply an indication of how topical, controversial, and all-encompassing the issues surrounding marriage are throughout our society--and the world-- today. Some of the views and opinions expressed, and their respective web sites, do NOT reflect the views or opinions of The Real Proposal™ magazine. Many are highlighted largely to reiterate that the alarming statistical trends on the chaotic state of "Marriage" and "Family"--outlined in "A Mere Glimpse"--will continue unabated without a fundamental grasp and purposeful dissemination of TRUTH on the issues.

Group Marriage TV Arrives in 2006: Are You Shocked? National Ledger, AZ, L Brent Bozell, Dec 30, 2005
. . . Hollywood's power to affect the popular culture is awesome, and its dedication to tearing down traditions is frightening. We've seen it repeated time and again. Once upon a time, society saw pre-marital sex as wrong; after years of "Friends"-style programming, today it is commonplace to see unmarried couples living together. It wasn't long ago that American society saw the homosexual lifestyle as immoral -- yes, a sin. Today, after years of Hollywood agitation, promoting gay characters and gay lifestyles, it is to be accepted, and anything short of that is intolerance. It seems like just yesterday that a teacher having sex with his/her underaged student was considered rape. No, there's another word for this: pedophilia. Today? Having been sensitized with enough "Dawson's Creek" episodes, we yawn when we hear about it on the news. ... Nonfictional "group marriage TV" will arrive on the Bravo channel in the spring, with a documentary called "Three of Hearts: A Postmodern Family," featuring a a New York triple with two gay men, a woman and two children. . .

British Woman Weds Dolphin Sydney Herald, Dec 30, 2005
British tourist Sharon Tendler has finally made her dream match - by "marrying" a dolphin she has been visiting for 15 years in the Israeli resort of Eilat, the mass-circulation Yediot Ahronot daily reported. Tendler, 41, has been visiting the city on the Gulf of Aqaba two or three times a year to spend time with her 35-year-old underwater sweetheart. "The peace and tranquility under water, and his love, would calm me down," the Israeli daily quoted her as saying. Last week Tendler finally plucked up the courage to ask the dolphin's trainer for the mammal's fin in marriage. . .

RELATED ARTICLE: Man bites dog? No, woman weds dolphin MSNBC.com-AP, Jan 3, 2006

Teaching teens could boost prospects of couples staying together

Teaching teens could boost prospects of couples staying together Bradenton Herald, By Michael Barber- Herald Staff Writer, United States, Dec 29, 2005
Divorce statistics don't paint a very flattering picture of marriage in the United States. . . Citing the statistics, many experts say divorce ultimately takes a devastating toll on life in America. "Separation and divorce can have adverse effects on the health and well-being of children and adults," CDC director Jeffrey Koplan said in a release issued by the National Center for Health Statistics. "Past research has shown that divorce is associated with higher rates of mortality, more health problems, and more risky behaviors such as increased alcohol use." Writing for the Heritage Foundation, Patrick Fagan and Robert Rector state that the troublesome impact of divorce is "obvious in family life, educational attainment, job stability, income potential, physical and emotional health, drug use, and crime."
If that's the case, what can be done to improve marriage prospects? Specifically, what can we teach today's teenagers that will give them the skills necessary to keep their marriages intact over the long haul. . . .

2005: A Hollywood love story CNN, By Todd Leopold, Dec 29, 2005
-- The most-talked about movie-star scene this year wasn't Harry Potter getting chosen by the Goblet of Fire. It wasn't "The 40-Year-Old Virgin" getting his chest hair ripped off. It wasn't Sarah Silverman telling a filthy joke, or Darth Vader getting burned, or George Clooney being tortured. It was Tom Cruise jumping on a couch. . . . But if Cruise's relationship with Holmes -- "TomKat," it was quickly labeled -- dominated the entertainment world for a time, it was far from the only romance to do so. Indeed, there were so many of them, and they sucked up so much oxygen, the year felt like one long read of the 1950s gossip magazine Confidential. . .

The case for Black marriage Rabble.ca, Canada- By Tricia Hylton - Dec 28, 2005
We just don't marry. Out of every ethnic group in Canada, Black Canadians marry the least. If marriage remains the foundation of a strong and stable family and community then clearly, this foundation is missing from our culture. Now you may think the resistance of Blacks — primarily Black men — to marry is just part of a 21st century social condition, and yes, that is partially true. But, it may surprise you to learn our resistance to marriage also has roots in slavery. . .

10 dangers to any marriage Health24.com- South Africa, By Susan Erasmus, Dec 28, 2005
You walk down the street in a neighbouring suburb and you see your spouse hand-in-hand with someone else. So the story about the business trip to Durban wasn't true after all. You feel devastated – and foolish. Can you ever completely affair-proof your marriage? Can you say with 100 percent certainty that neither you nor your spouse would ever have an affair? ...But there are certainly things that could put marriages at risk. But that doesn't mean to say that everyone will go ahead and get involved with someone else if given the chance. . .
Elton John’s ‘marriage’ to a man stinks New Vision- Uganda, By Julius Sseremba, Dec 27, 2005
It finally happened. The deplorable. The unthinkable. The despicable. All moralists weep and along I cry. A man, Sir Elton John, andanother man, David Furnish, sealed their long time homosexual relationship with the blessing of the government of the United Kingdom. Equally fascinating, Furnish’s dog, Arthur, acted as emperekeze. . . The desire by man to pursue a God-free destiny, which is indeed a form of self-worship, has always caused an upturn in the man-beast relationship. The man becomes like a beast and is no longer regarded as the ruler in the sense he was meant to be at creation. . .

RELATED ARTICLE: Sir Elton celebrates his big day BBC News Entertainment, By Caroline Briggs, Dec 21, 2005

Here Comes the Brides: Victor de Bruijn & wife Bianca have 'married' Mirjam Geven

Here Comes The Brides: Plural marriage is waiting in the wings The Weekly Standard-Volume 011, Issue 15- By Stanley Kurtz, Dec 26, 2005
ON SEPTEMBER 23, 2005, the 46-year-old Victor de Bruijn and his 31-year-old wife of eight years, Bianca, presented themselves to a notary public in the small Dutch border town of Roosendaal. And they brought a friend. Dressed in wedding clothes, Victor and Bianca de Bruijn were formally united with a bridally bedecked Mirjam Geven, a recently divorced 35-year-old whom they'd met several years previously through an Internet chatroom. . . . In short, while the Dutch triple wedding set the conservative blogosphere ablaze with warnings, same-sex marriage advocates dismissed the story as a silly stunt with absolutely no implications for the gay marriage debate. And how did America's mainstream media adjudicate the radically different responses of same-sex marriage advocates and opponents to events in the Netherlands? By ignoring the entire affair. Yet there is a story here. And it's bigger than even those chortling conservative websites claim. . . .

Marriage is the trend in earthquake disaster area World Peace Herald, DC - By Shahid Husain, Dec 26, 2005
CHATTAR PLAIN, Pakistan -- The lush green valleys of Pakistan's North West Frontier Province that were devastated by Oct. 8 earthquake measuring 7.6 on the Richter scale that took a toll of more than 73,000 humans and made as many as 3.5 million homeless are witnessing a strange phenomenon: Young people living in tent villages are getting married, defying the grim reality that winter and rough weather pose a grave threat to the survivors. . .
Darling, It's Over! Sydney Morning Herald, By Deirdre Bair, Dec 26, 2005
Not every writer gets the inspiration for a new book in a dentist's waiting room. There I was, a nervous wreck, waiting for what I knew would be bad news, so I thought I'd divert myself by reading magazines. There wasn't much on the table and most of it was old and tattered - hot rods, golf, raising babies - but at the bottom of the pile, I spied what I thought was the best of a bad lot, a magazine for oldies. The cover photo was like all their others: a woman who didn't look old enough to be there, but it was the blurb for one of the articles that caught my attention: "The New Divorce: why more women than ever are calling it quits (and why men don't see it coming)." The story was based on a survey of 1147 people aged 40 to 79, all of whom divorced between 40 and 60. The reporter called it "groundbreaking" because it put the lie to the usual assumptions that men leave and women seldom find love and/or companionship ever again. My own divorce happened after 43 years of marriage, and in the years since I had been told countless divorce stories (whether I wanted to hear them or not) from friends, business associates and casual acquaintances everywhere from Paris to Zurich to Sydney. . .

Gay priests rebel over 'marriage' BBC News, UK - Dec 24, 2005
The Church of England is facing a rebellion from gay clergy over the question of same-sex partnerships. Some gay priests who want a civil partnership themselves have said they will refuse to give private details about their relationship. The Church has reminded clergy that it would view those in civil partnerships as being in a sexual relationship. . . In recent correspondence, the Church of England reiterated its teachings that sexual relations should only take place within a heterosexual marriage. The church is not enforcing its directive on lay members who have civil partnerships but is telling clergy they must promise that their relationships will be celibate. . .
Concerned Women Thank Senate for Action on 'Marriage Strengthening Bill Christian Post- CA, By Jason Davis, Dec 22, 2005
A conservative pro-family group thanked senators on Wednesday for passing a bill that includes a $100 million provision for “marriage strengthening” programs. The bill must also pass in the House before going to the President to be signed into law. The marriage initiative would provide financial resources for educational and skill-based programs to teach couples how to make their marriage work, according to a statement released by Concerned Women for America. . .

The dessert that saved my marriage Christian Science Monitor, MA, By John Dreyer, Dec 21, 2005
Christmas dinner was not Christmas dinner in our family without Annabelle's Christmas Pie. Forget the turkey and dressing and mashed potatoes, which we did. Our tradition was beef tenderloin, twice-baked potatoes, corn pudding, and cranberries. But my mother almost could have skipped the entrée and side dishes as long as she made her famous dessert. In fact, I credit the pie with saving the holiday, if not my marriage, when my wife spent her first Christmas with my family. . .
Annabelle's Christmas Pie
3 (9-inch) deep-dish frozen pie crusts
About 1/2 gallon peppermint ice cream, softened
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1 (12-ounce) package semisweet chocolate chips
Meringue . . .

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UK’s 1st official gay couples tie knot in Belfast MSNBC - Dec 20, 2005
BELFAST, Northern Ireland - The two women strode into City Hall with outsized pink corsages pinned to their black-and-white tailored suits, ignoring the chants of anti-homosexual protesters outside. The two — Grainne Close, a Northern Ireland social worker, and Shannon Sickels, a New York playwright — emerged from the building after a 30-minute ceremony, smiling and proudly displaying their matching diamond and platinum rings. Close and Sickels were among the United Kingdom’s first three same-sex unions Monday, when a new British law granting legal status to gay and lesbian couples came into force here first. . .

UK's 1st official gay couples tie knot in Belfast

Sir Elton celebrates his big day BBC News Entertainment, By Caroline Briggs, Dec 21, 2005
Sir Elton John and his partner David Furnish have become one of the first gay couples in England and Wales to "tie the knot" in a civil partnership ceremony. The "wedding" of Sir Elton and Mr Furnish attracted hundreds of fans and onlookers to the streets of Windsor on Wednesday. A cold and wet winter morning failed to dampen the spirits of the handful of fans who turned up early to bag the best positions. At first the banks of press, photographers and police outnumbered well-wishers, but soon they were matched by the swelling numbers of fans and curious Christmas shoppers. After all, Sir Elton and Mr Furnish were the second-biggest draw to the Guildhall this year after Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles married at the same venue in April. . .

RELATED ARTICLE: Former President Clinton does Tribute Video For Elton John Gay 'Wedding'

It's Love, Marriage -- Then a Postnuptial Deal Miami Herald, FL, By James Burnett III, Dec 19, 2005
As prenuptial agreements become more acceptable, a new must-have has emerged for some spouses. Welcome to the age of the postnup. Love 'em or hate 'em, prenuptial agreements have become an integral part of American marriages, especially as more adults become reluctant to marry and fewer stay married. But the rising acceptance of pre-nups has created an unexpected trend, some experts say: A growing number of married Americans who don't have prenups -- or who want to tweak existing agreements -- are now signing postnups just in case the rest of the rest of their lives isn't so blissful. . .
Melting marriage cynicism San Francisco Chronicle, By Jane Ganahl, USA, Dec 18, 2005
I admit that these days I'm feeling a little cynical about love and marriage. Although I'm darn near perfectly content as an unmarried woman with too much to do, the holidays make it tough to ignore a recent spate of datelessness. Thank God my family has stopped asking whether I'm seeing anyone. But it's not just my own personal love life -- or lack thereof -- that's got me down. . . With the groundswell of sentiment that it's OK not to be married (I swear we shall invert this paradigm before I check out), and the many joys to be had in living alone, why even bother to get married anymore? Especially once you've reached "that certain age" where independence feels like such a luxury? I was reminded of a few reasons just recently when two close friends surprised the world by suddenly deciding to marry -- after six years of togetherness. . .

Looking for Christmas Magic? It’s in People Stoking the Fires of Love, Laughter BlackAmericaWeb.com, By Joseph C. Phillips, Dec 12, 2005
When our children were born, my wife and I decided that Christmas in our home would emphasize the story of our savior’s birth rather than the tale of Kris Kringle. As much fun as Santa might be, it was more important to us that our children understand that all good gifts come from God and not a jolly, fat man in a red suit. . . All these years later, I find myself watching my wife. I will look up, see her across the room and suddenly I am a voyeur. I admire the curves of her body, the shape of her face and the way her hair falls on her shoulders. There are times I am filled with admiration and longing and other times in which I am simply filled with wonder that we are together. Our path was long and bumpy, yet here we are, a family. That cold December night, I couldn’t know how deeply God was blessing me. . . .

Looking for Christmas magic? It's in people stoking the fires of love, laughter

If You're Thinking of Marrying- Part II Townhall.com, DC, By Dennis Prager, Dec 13, 2005
It is exceptionally difficult to find the right person to marry. This is especially true for first marriages. That is why it is so important to think through your decision by asking and answering critical questions. In Part I, I offered five. Here are seven more:
6. What problems do the two of you now have? And what inner voice of doubt, if any, are you suppressing? Here is a rule that is rarely broken: Whatever problems you have before the wedding day, you will have during your marriage. Do not think that marrying will solve any problem you have with the person. You therefore have three choices: Make peace with the problem, see if it can be solved before deciding to marry, or don't marry the person. It is imperative that you be ruthlessly honest with yourself. And that is very hard. Nothing in life is easier than denying problems when you are in love. That is why it is important to pay attention to inner doubts.
7. How often do you fight? . . .

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Why Christians Leave Out God in the Marriage Debate Christian Post, CA, By Rhoda Tse, Dec 10, 2005
– As the marriage debate rages across the country, some are wondering why they so often hear, “one man and one woman,” as the correct model, but leave out God. A national marriage expert, the president of a regional marriage protection ministry, and a publicist and lay leader – all Christians – suggest a few reasons, but all agreed that Christians should not leave God out because He is integral to every successful marriage. Christian publicist and a regular churchgoer Mike Paul has worked with Christian groups both large and small, and to his dismay found that when up on a podium, leaders “from Billy Graham’s daughter to Chuck Colson” failed to mention God when addressing crowds about the correct model for marriage. “It is not one man and one woman, but it’s a triangle with God at the top,” said Paul. But “when everyone brings that message up, we hear, ‘Oh, that’s an important message,’ but then they don’t change it,” he added. Paul believes the reasons that national Christian figureheads are not telling the whole story may be linked to fear – a fear of secular reprisal. “I think some of us are trying to be politically correct in an area where you have to be politically incorrect for the Lord, and that is a major problem,” he said. . .

Why Christians leave out God in the marriage debate

Matt Damon Ties the Knot ABC News, Dec 9, 2005
— Like his longtime pal Ben Affleck, Matt Damon is now a married man, and they soon may be arranging play dates for their kids. US Weekly is reporting that the 35-year-old Oscar winner and his girlfriend Luciana Barroso exchanged vows in a brief ceremony this morning officiated by a justice of the peace. Damon proposed to his 30-year-old bride shortly before Labor Day. They have been dating two years, and she is three months pregnant. US is reporting that Barroso's six-year-old daughter, Alexa, from a previous relationship, witnessed the wedding at New York's City Hall. . . .

Matt Damon ties the knot with Luciana Barroso

A Revolution Without a Man to Love Townhall.com, By Suzanne Fields, Dec 8, 2005
. . . The cruelest irony of the revolution that changed the relationships of the sexes is the shortage of eligible men. It's not that there are fewer men statistically, but there are fewer desirable men statistically. A headline in The Washington Post complains: "Disappearing Act: Where Have the Men Gone? No Place Good." . . . One of the depressing consequences is that increasing numbers of women find their children at sperm banks. Some are women whose husbands are unable to procreate, but many (and they're not all lesbians) simply don't want to bother with a man in their lives. They think they can do it better alone. By some estimates, the number of single women seeking donor sperm has doubled in a decade. A customer with money confronts no social stigma. The celebrity magazines are awash with stories of women who are "single mothers by choice." But these designer children suffer just like children without fathers have always suffered. . .

If You're Thinking of Marrying Part I Townhall.com, By Dennis Prager, Dec 6, 2005
Decades of radio counseling, personal experience, and public and private discussions about marriage prompt me to write this list of questions for anyone contemplating marriage.
1. Is the person your best friend or at least becoming so?
It is easy to find a lover. It is easy to get excited about a new person. But if you cannot say that the person you are considering marrying has become or is becoming your best friend, you need to figure out why before you decide to marry. This is probably the single most overlooked question among couples, especially young ones. . . . . One of the most devastating ideas of the last generation was that needing or depending upon another person is a sign of weakness. The opposite is true. The inability to need is a sign of weakness -- you are afraid to relinquish power or afraid to be hurt.
2. Aside from sex, do you enjoy each other?. . .

Angelina Jolie Pregnant With Brad Pitt's Baby? Post Chronicle, BY Mike Baron, Dec 2, 2005
Hollywood couple Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie finally came out of the closet, appearing together in public, holding hands. Pitt, 41, who recently divorced from Hollywood superstar Jennifer Aniston, was seen on November 18, when he arrived at the opening of the Muhammad Ali Center in Louisville, Ky, holding hands with his rumored lover Jolie, and posing for the fans and press. Angelina was seen sporting a bit of a belly and breasts that appeared to be larger than normal. Now, either Angelina is pregnant or she's been drinking beer heavily and had a boob job. . .

Brad Pitt to adopt Angelina's children CNN - Dec 2, 2005
-- Brad Pitt is seeking to become the adoptive father of Angelina Jolie's children, the actor's publicist announced Friday. A legal petition seeking to change the names of the children to Zahara Jolie-Pitt and Maddox Jolie-Pitt was filed Friday in Los Angeles, publicist Cindy Guagenti said in a written statement to The Associated Press. "We are confirming that Brad Pitt is in the process of becoming the adoptive father of both children," the statement said. "No further comment is being made." The couple has been romantically linked since the filming of "Mr. & Mrs. Smith." . . .

More "Marriage" News (November 2005)