World Family Policy Center Newsletter

Elder Bruce C. Hafen, J.D.

Attorney, former Dean of the Law School at Brigham Young University

The following is an excerpt from Bruce Hafen’s speech "Lovers Do Not Live for Themselves Alone: The Social Value of Traditional Marriage" presented at The World Congress of Families IV Warsaw, Poland, May 2007:

…The universal Love Story is one of history's most familiar and hoped-for story lines: boy meets girl, and they fall in love. As their love proves stronger than their fears, they marry, have children, and face life's tests together in a life story punctuated by what one ancient writer called "suffering, sorrow, afflictions — and incomprehensible joy."

Men and women the world over have found that married love gives birth to commitments so deep that marriage creates a kind of mysterious power. The power is in love's paradox, something about finding ourselves by losing ourselves in bonds that demand everything of us — even as those bonds also brings us life's highest fulfillment.

This is not just a personal story, but a community story. Marriage has always been the crucial knot in the fabric that holds society together. Every marriage affects those in the concentric circles of influence that ripple outward from the couple, through their children to the larger community. That is why guests and friends have always celebrated weddings as community events.

As Wendell Berry put it, "Marriage (is) not just a bond between two people but a bond between those two people and their forebears, their children and their neighbors." Therefore, "Lovers must not . . . live for themselves alone. . . . They say their vows to the community as much as to one another, and the community gathers around them to hear and to wish them well, on their behalf and on its own. . . . If the community cannot protect this giving, it can protect nothing. . . . It is the fundamental connection without which nothing holds, and trust is its necessity."

The Claddaugh Ring, a wedding ring from Irish antiquity, symbolizes how marriage is a three-way promise. Originally the ring had three distinct bands. The bride brought her band to the altar, offering her heart in her hand. The groom then placed on her finger a second band, joining his heart with hers. Then a priest or state official would complete the wedding with a third band that carried a crown — a symbol of the community's interest in the marriage.

The crown in the third strand of the Claddaugh Ring also symbolized the couple's future children. As Louis de Bonald wrote two centuries ago, the state represents those children at a wedding so that "public power" can guarantee "the commitment made by the two spouses to form a society."

The community attends weddings not to pry into private affairs, but because of its enormous stake in the outcome and the offspring of each marriage. To marry is to make a public commitment that one accepts personal responsibility for one's children and for their influence on the kind of community we create over time. Indeed, it is precisely this public part of marriage that distinguishes it from all other relationships and contracts. Neighbors and friends don't gather to celebrate business contracts. But people everywhere love to come to weddings. The children among the guests often come with wonder in their eyes. Some of the older people come with tears in their eyes — perhaps tears of joy; or perhaps tears of empathy, because they think they know what the couple is really in for.

Marriage is our first and most important social institution, so basic that its emergence in unrecorded history marked the beginning of civilization — the moment when men took a permanent interest in their wives and in their offspring. Marriage has thus given young couples in every culture a kind of life-script for their story together, full of messages and meanings, both personal and social. This script gives each couple "an orientation toward the future," said Kay Hymowitz, so "the self-governing couple" can raise "children to be self-governing citizens." These social and personal expectations make marriage our culture's primary means for transmitting values from one generation to another, the key source of society's long term stability…

To read the entire speech, visit http://www.worldcongress.org/wcf4.spkrs/wcf4.hafen.htm

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FEATURED NEWS ARTICLES

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1. Schwarzenegger: Home School Ruling 'Outrageous:’ Governor Says Ruling Must Be Overturned

CBS13

March 7, 2008

SACRAMENTO ― Governor Schwarzenegger says the court ruling that says parents must have a teaching credential to home school their kids is 'outrageous'.

The governor issued the following stern statement today regarding the recent ruling by the state's Second District Court of Appeals.

"Every California child deserves a quality education and parents should have the right to decide what's best for their children. Parents should not be penalized for acting in the best interests of their children's education. This outrageous ruling must be overturned by the courts and if the courts don't protect parents' rights then, as elected officials, we will."

The governor adds support to opponents of the ruling who have already said they appeal.

The court's opinion came down in February 28. In it, Justice H. Walter Croskey wrote, "Parents do not have a constitutional right to home school their children."

To view the entire article, visit http://cbs13.com/local/schwarzenegger.home.schooling.2.672163.html

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2. British Labour Government Will Let Pro-Life MPs Abstain on Human Cloning Bill

Lifenews.com

March 7, 2008

London, England -- British Labour Party leaders have relented and will let pro-life Catholic members of the caucus abstain on a vote on a bill that would promote human cloning. Some Catholic MPs were concerned they couldn't vote for the Human Fertilisation and Embryology bill that the ruling government wants its members to approve.

Three British cabinet ministers, including Ruth Kelly, Des Browne and Paul Murphy, voiced objections.

On Friday, chief whip Geoff Hoon told the London Guardian newspaper that the members will be allowed to abstain. The unusual move will help them avoid having to vote for the measure, although the Conservative Party is going further by allowing a full free vote for its members.

Hoon said pro-life MPs would be able to use special "standing orders of the parliamentary Labour party" to not vote on the bill.

"Nobody will be required to vote against their conscience," he told the newspaper.

The news comes after a group of 108 scientists, attorneys, and religious leaders signed a letter to the London Times saying they didn't think the political parties should force MPs to vote for the bill.

To view the entire article, visit http://www.lifenews.com/bio2355.html

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3. Salt Lake’s Domestic Partner Registry Appears Safe

Deseret News

March 6, 2008

The fate of Salt Lake City's new domestic partner registry was uncertain for much of the legislative session.

By late Wednesday the registry appeared safe, though it likely will require a name change.

The minor changes required by SB299, which received final approval Wednesday, are small compared with an earlier bill that would have stymied the registry. That bill was held by the Senate amid political woes of its sponsor, Sen. Chris Buttars, R-West Jordan. And in the late hours of the session, an attempt in the House to derail the registry failed.

In a 61-9 vote, the House approved SB299, which is aimed at setting guidelines for cities that opt to provide benefits to unmarried couples, without violating Amendment 3, Utah's constitutional ban on same-sex marriage and substantially similar civil unions.

SB299 now moves to Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. for final approval, which spokeswoman Lisa Roskelley said is likely. If signed into law, the bill would allow local registries based on financial dependence or interdependence, and allow local governments to offer employee benefits using the same standards. However, it would prevent cities from setting up domestic partnerships or civil unions.

"The purpose of (SB299) is to reaffirm marriage under Amendment 3 and to prevent municipal registries from creating a marriage look-alike," said House sponsor Rep. Kevin Garn, R-Layton.

To view the entire article, visit http://www.deseretnews.com/article/content/mobile/0,5223,695259140,00.html

Effort to Protect Traditional Marriage in Iowa Falls Short

CitizenLink

March 7, 2008

Seven Democrats in the Iowa House who supported a marriage amendment have changed their minds, allowing a state court ruling redefining marriage to stand — at least for now.

“If those seven had voted with us, (the amendment) would have passed, but I guess they will have to explain to their constituents why they flip-flopped on this issue,” House Minority Leader Christopher Rants told Iowa’s Quad-City Times.

The Iowa Family Policy Center had tried to gather enough signatures to pull the amendment out of committee, but fell short.

Chuck Hurley, president of the center, said the news is troubling, but there still is hope.

“The silver lining is that a large majority of Iowans support one-man, one-woman marriage," he said. "So our hope is that they will remember in November."

To view the entire article, visit http://www.citizenlink.org/CLBriefs/A000006729.cfm

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4. United Nations Status of Women Committee Removes Pro-Abortion Language

Lifenews.com

March 10, 2008

Final negotiations for the final document of the UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) ended as the sun rose on Saturday morning. Pro-life efforts helped keep the controversial term "sexual and reproductive health and rights" out of the main document.

The term was also kept out of the other negotiated documents, one on female genital mutilation and another on HIV/AIDs.

Non-governmental lobbyists were kept out of the main negotiating room for the two-week conference so pro-life lobbyists kept a vigil outside the negotiating rooms until 4:30 AM on Saturday. Several delegations thanked the lobbyists for remaining at the UN throughout the night.

One Latin American delegate even admitted to the group that delegates needed to be held accountable and know that their actions were being closely watched.

One lobbyist told the Friday Fax that “It’s important for these delegates to see that there is a pro-life presence here. As long as they are working on documents that could affect unborn lives, we will be here to bear witness.”

To view the entire article, visit http://www.lifenews.com/int654.html

Lawsuit alleges overbilling by Planned Parenthood

LA Times

March 8, 2008

A whistle-blower lawsuit contends that Planned Parenthood affiliates in California overcharged the state and federal governments by at least $180 million for birth-control pills, despite internal and external warnings that its billing practices were improper.

In the federal suit, P. Victor Gonzalez says he was fired in March 2004 as vice president of finance and administration of the Los Angeles affiliate after raising concerns about the "illegal accounting, billing and donations practices of Planned Parenthood."

The alleged overbillings began in the late 1990s and continued until the Legislature changed the law in 2004 to allow Planned Parenthood to bill at a higher rate for oral contraceptives, said Gonzalez's lawyer, Jack Schuler.

A 2004 state audit of Planned Parenthood of San Diego and Riverside Counties -- one of nine affiliates statewide -- lends some support to Gonzalez's allegations. The report identified more than $5.2 million in overbillings just during the 2003 fiscal year.

To view the entire article, visit http://www.latimes.com/news/local/politics/cal/la-me-billing8mar08,1,2352809,print.story

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5. Christian librarian takes 'gay' profs to federal court

WorldNetDaily

March 11, 2008

A former librarian at Ohio State University-Mansfield who was publicly accused by the faculty of sexual harassment – just for recommending students read the best-selling book "The Marketing of Evil" by David Kupelian – has filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against the school and faculty members, alleging they violated his 1st and 14th Amendment rights.

The case was filed yesterday in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio by attorney Tom Condit, representing Scott Savage, a devout Quaker and former head of Reference and Instructional Services at Bromfield Library on Ohio State University's Mansfield campus.

Savage took a leave of absence and said he was later forced into resigning because of the virulent reaction from homosexual faculty members after he suggested the book be included in a required reading list for freshmen.

To view the entire article, visit http://worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=58629

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6. Citizen revolt forces vote on coed showers: 'Gender identity' discrimination ban placed on ballot after petition drive

WorldNetDaily

March 7, 2008

A recently passed Maryland county law that critics say allows men and women to mix in restrooms and locker rooms has been put on hold until it goes before voters this fall.

Officials with Maryland Citizens for a Responsible Government say the Montgomery County Board of Elections has certified their petition issue to appear on the November election ballot.

The law aims to protect transgender people from discrimination in housing, employment, public accommodations and various services.

"We are delighted that the board has validated our petition, containing the signatures of over 32,000 citizens," said Ruth Jacobs, president of MCRG. "We have gotten the sense from talking to thousands of voters across every political and demographic line that the council is really out of step on this one."

The volunteer organization needed 25,001 signatures to succeed.

To view the entire article, visit http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=58279