Bishop of Shrewsbury Mark Davies has called on voters in the General Election to lobby politicians on the importance of placing marriage at the heart of plans to renew society.
At the annual diocesan Mass in celebration of marriage, Bishop Davies said that the “single most important factor” in the flourishing of children was the stability of the relationship of their parents.
Addressing a congregation at St Columba’s Church, Chester that was collectively celebrating 1,970 years of married life, Bishop Davies said that marriage had been diminished to just one among many lifestyle choices, instead of being recognised as the bedrock of society.
The harm caused by family breakdown must lead “our elected representatives to have the courage and responsibility to recognise the central place of marriage in securing the good of society and of new generations”, Bishop Davies said.
He said the faithful would be right to expect candidates seeking their votes to take the place of marriage seriously. Bishop Davies said: “Research indicates that the single most important factor in a child’s flourishing is the stable relationship of their parents and while this stability is the norm when parents are married, it is the exception when they are not.
“Recent surveys also indicate most young people in 21st century Britain still aspire to the enduring faithfulness of marriage, even as we suffer one of the highest rates of family breakdown anywhere in Europe and witness the institution of marriage in near-catastrophic decline. Sadly, in public life and policy we have seen a parallel diminishment of the place of marriage, as if it were merely a lifestyle choice rather than the bedrock on which the well-being of the individual and society is bound up.
“Amid the many choices and challenges faced at a General Election, we cannot hope for families and society to flourish if marriage does not flourish. And while we cannot expect a generation of politicians to resolve so great a crisis, we should expect our elected representatives to have the courage and responsibility to recognise the central place of marriage in securing the good of society and of new generations.”
He spoke as the Marriage Foundation revealed that it has been more than a decade since any cabinet minister has made a speech that included the importance of marriage. The charity urged political parties to “champion marriage, make it attractive for couples to marry, and turn back the tide of family breakdown”.
Meanwhile, Jesuit Missions has launched a dedicated resources page to help people engage in the process in the run-up to polling day. Materials include a youth guide to the election, what Catholic Social Teaching says on elections and special prayer resources.
And Medaille Trust, a leading Catholic charity in the fight against human trafficking and modern slavery, is calling on all political parties to commit to a renewed focus on eliminating modern slavery. There are still an estimated 122,000 people in modern slavery in the UK today and the support systems for potential victims are overdue for review and reform, the trust said.
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