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Marriage Counseling

Lynda M. CookeSenior Seminar, PSY 484aColorado Christian UniversityNovember 28, 2013

Adam and Eveenjoyed the first marriage in human history

God created man in his own image; in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. And God blessed them, and God said to them, 'be fruitful and multiply . . .'

(Gen 1:27-26a, RSV)

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History of DivorceIn England

• King Henry VIII sought to annul his marriage to Catherine of Aragon

• Pope Clement VII's refusal of the annulment sparked the English Reformation

• This created a bloody schism within the Catholic Church

(Sykes, Booty, & Knight, 1988, p. 26)

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History of DivorceIn the United States

• 1931: the state of Nevada legalized divorce

• 1932: counselors organized to help couples experiencing difficulties

(Morris, 1951, p. 1287)(Mace, 1957, p. 2).

Marriage Philosophyof the 1950’s

"Marriage is for love, and love means happiness. We've got to be happy in marriage, or else . . .”

(Mace, 1957)

Premarital CounselingEst. 1930’s

• Ernest Grove pioneered college courses in marriage

• This sparked the premarital counseling movement

• This movement gained a foothold with clergy

(Mace, 1957, p. 6-7).

Marriage CounselingEst. 1930’s

• Marriage problems must be brought for counseling early

• husband and wife cooperate fully in the counseling process

• The couple continues counseling for a reasonable amount of time

(Mace, 1957)

Reformed Divorce LawsEst. 1970’s

Laws that enable the courts to issue divorce decrees with only one spouse petitioning for divorce without a reason.

(Drewianka, 2004, p. 486).

Gay MarriageEst. 2004

• 17 States authorize Gay Marriage

• Many courts refuse to hear Gay Divorce Cases

• The view of marriage as a contract is consistent with communitarian goals

(Procon.org, 2013; Stinson , 2013)

Marriage CounselingCredentialing

Colleges accept 70.2% of applicants into their Marriage Counseling Master’s Programs

(Landrum & Davis, 2014)

Theological Reflection

I say to you that every one who divorces his wife, except on the grounds of unchastity, makes her an adulteress; and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.

(Mat. 5:32, RSV)

Conclusion

Every new divorce represents the crumbling of another unit of human society. Anything we can do to prevent that is worthwhile.

(Mace, 1957)

References

American Psychological Association. (2013). Marriage & divorce. Retrieved from: http://www.apa.org/topics/divorce/

Drewianka, S. (2004). Divorce law and family formation. Journal of popular economics.

James, D. (2012). Parliamentary divorce, 1700-1857. Parliamentary history(31)2.

Landrum, R. E., Davis, S. F. (2014). The psychology major: Career options and strategies for success (5th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc.

Library of Congress. (2002). Primary documents in American history: 14th amendment to the U. S. Constitution. Retrieved from: http://www.loc.gov/rr/program/bib/ourdocs/14thamendment.html

Mace. D. R. (1957). What is marriage? (1st ed.). Gainesville, FL: University of Florida Public Affairs Committee, Inc.

References

Morris, J. H. C. (1951). Divisible divorce. Harvard law review (64).

Procon.org. (2013). Should gay marriage be legal. Retrieved from: http://gaymarriage.procon.org/

Stinson, J. M.. (2012). The right to (same-sex) divorce. Case western reserve law review(62)2.

Sykes, S. Booty, J. Knight, J. (1998). The study of Anglicanism. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press.

The Holy Bible. Revised standard version. Retrieved from: www.blueletterbible.org