Divorce

DIVORCE

            This week we were able to read about divorce and the role that it plays in the lives of children all over the world. We were able to watch some videos and read several articles and talks on the subject. Through all of the reading, I kept thinking of the family proclamation. It gives us a basis for what a family is and its roles. But specifically from the reading my favorite quote came from Elder Dallin H. Oaks talk titled Divorce. He said, “The kind of marriage required for exaltation—eternal in duration and godlike in quality—does not contemplate divorce.” That just hit me so hard that we need to plan to get married but not plan to get divorced. It broke my heart watching the video of the children that go to a special school because they come from a divorced home. I am glad that they have places like that for those children to go, but it makes me sad that those places are necessary. In the readings, it also talked a lot about how children that come from a divorced home don’t do as well socially, emotionally, physically, and in other domains. Children need a father and a mother who are married to each other and who will remain faithful. I also thought the studies were interesting that they did on the difference between divorced homes and cohabitating homes. The data shows that those children don’t do as well. This is stated in the article by Paul R. Amato titled The Impact of Family Formation Change on the Cognitive, Social, and Emotional Well-Being of the Next Generation. In that article he says, “Research clearly demonstrates that children growing up with two continuously married parents are less likely than other children to experience a wide range of cognitive, emotional, and social problems, not only during childhood, but also in adulthood.” This shows that traditional families are what children need and will always need. It’s also important to remember that if you come from divorced parents, you can break the cycle and become what Carlfred Broderick calls a transitional character. This is someone that changes the future and does not fall into the traditions of their fathers.