A little boy was attending his first wedding. After the service his cousin asked him, “How many women can a man marry?” “Sixteen,” was his prompt reply. “How do you know that?” asked the cousin. “Easy,” the little boy said, “all you have to do is add it up.” The preacher said, “four better, four worse, four richer, four poorer!” Although comical, there are many adults who may share similar thoughts.

Today within our society, something is radically wrong with how we view marriage. Marriages are under fire and traditional family life is disintegrating. Year by year the stress put on marriages grows greater. In 1870 there was one divorce for every 34 marriages. By 1900 it was one in five, and by 1950 it was one in three. However, within the past few years one of every two marriages ends in divorce. According to a recent report, Alabama ranked with the fourth highest divorce rate in the nation. We find ourselves here due to the view that we hold for marriages.

For many, marriage has become a social convenience but if our families and community will be restored we must change the lack of respect for this sacred institution.

During my first session in the Legislature, I introduced legislation that I believe would have helped to reverse the embarrassing divorce rate within Alabama. The legislation called for a waiting period before divorce, but the legislation never came out of committee. Most of the statements that I heard came from a contractual perspective. There was talk about money and property and so forth. However, the contractual model is not what marriage is about. There are some general characteristics that come along with such a model but I will only share two for the time being. The meaning of covenant is an agreement that a person would not break even if the partner to whom that person is in covenant breaks the stipulations of the covenant. There are some who say this is far-reaching and that people should always have a way out. I can understand that perspective but I am reserved to say that if we go into marriages looking for a way out, we were never fully in. Let’s reinvest in our marriages and families. Our society is only as strong as the marriages within it.