What is Marriage All About?

by leony on July 31, 2009

A marriage is traditionally the union of a man with a woman. That’s marriage in its most widely accepted form in modern human society. Of course there are many other forms of marriage and they include marriages between the same sexes such as gay marriage. Some religious factions don’t support same sex marriages. As time moves on, people are becoming more tolerant about the idea of marriage and with the onset of modernity people are becoming more open to other types of marriage. The traditional culture and religion play a major role in normal marriage ceremonies. The religious beliefs that a family is comprised of a father, a mother and their offspring is what we all have grown up with. This could be one reason why same sex marriage is so deterring to most people. Another kind of marriage is where a man has more than one wife, called polygamy. Jewish cultures accept this form of the marriage and a man can marry as many women as he can support. However, God demanded a man could marry a single woman in the New Testament.

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However much polygamy is despised, it’s still quite popular especially in African countries. One such example of polygamy in modern Africa would be that of the King of Swaziland, King Mswati who had more than 10 wives and the numbers, ever increasing. In the African culture, polygamous activities were a sign of power and wealth. Their ideas about marriage depend on their cultural practices, hence traditional marriage ceremonies will differ from person to person depending on their cultural background. Polyandry is another form of marriage although it’s not that popular. This form involves a couple of men getting married to the same woman!

1722993939_cfb1583a57from EternalMe

There are laws that govern traditional marriages and one gets married having gone through a particular process in linear progression. A traditional wedding ceremony is the most common aspect of a traditional marriage. Usually such a ceremony is conducted in a church with a lot of hullabaloo. It’s usually an event that is communal and still unlike any normal everyday event. The white wedding gown the bride puts on is a symbol of purity something related with to the traditional wedding.

Purity plays a huge part in marriages. This is why traditionally the bride had to be a virgin while getting married. The issue was biased since more emphasis was laid on the virginity of the girl than the boy. These days these are no more features of the traditional wedding. Nowadays brides can have it their way and choose whichever color they want. Purity has taken up a more liberal angle and isn’t as necessary as it was before. Instead, to be lawfully wedded, a couple has to have a marriage license which fulfills the laws of your state. So if you’re planning to get married, knowing the various laws of your state or country helps. In this contemporary modern society, fulfilling the legalities attached to marriage is the most important thing.

Do you agree or disagree?
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