Anti Divorce

DIVORCE DEBATE (ANTI-DIVORCE)

OPENING STATEMENT :

Divorce is not legalized in the Philippines (Article XV, Sec. 2 “Marriage, as an inviolable social institution, is
the foundation of the family and shall be protected by the State”).As such, it is deemed immoral, what are
your opinions about this?

TOPICS:
SACRED MATTERS Divorce is immoral.
It has been said “Divorce is like the destruction of a country”. And I hold that divorce is certainly immoral in
all but the rarest of cases. Sometimes, in the case of marital infidelity, relationships can be restored. That’s not
to say that all can.

Sometimes, in the case of domestic abuse, relationships can be restored. That’s not to say that all can.
But what in my mind is a greater immortality, is the lack of attempting to repair what was damaged. If there is
physical/emotional abuse, or if there is adultery, or even if there is only “we’ve fallen out of love”, divorce
has become an “escape valve” used when it’s easier to “bail on difficulty” without actually addressing the
underlying issues, and taking steps to correct those underlying issues. How can we, as a people, trust one
another, when we - as a whole - don’t take marriage; meant to be one man and one woman (Christian,
remember?) joined together for life. Take away the Judeo-Christian notions of marriage for a moment; I’m
speaking of the sanctity of one’s commitment, and remaining true to one’s own words. If you truly do mean
“I love you forever”, then MEAN IT! Do whatever it takes not only to deal with the difficult times, but be
honest with yourself and fix your own issues while working on repairing any harm in the relationship.
Divorce is immoral, but treating marriage is “no big deal” is also immoral. Why? Because marriage is the
means by which God describes His relationship with us: Loved; by choice; and eternal with no exemptions.

Marriage is Sacred.
It is now being argued that marriage is no better than any other type of relationship and should not
have a special status in law. It is said that marriage is just a piece of paper. But this is not how God
sees it. At the beginning of creation God spelled out the importance of marriage to mankind when,
after Eve was created for Adam, the Bible records: “For this reason a man will leave his father and
mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh”(Genesis 2:24). Marriage is a
creation ordinance and therefore God’s teaching on marriage and sex is relevant to the world as well
as to the church. Marriage is meant for the good of all people – not just Christians.

It is said in the bible that whosoever breaks the sacred statute of divorce will be committing
adultery.
Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.” When they were in the house again, the
disciples asked Jesus about this. He answered, “Anyone who divorces his wife and marries another woman
commits adultery against her.And if she divorces her husband and marries another man, she commits
adultery.”

PSYCHOLOGICAL EFFECTS OF DIVORCE

The effects associated with divorce affect the couple's children in both the short and the long term. After
divorce the couple often experience effects including, decreased levels of happiness, change in economic
status, and emotional problems. Children may subsequently experience anger, depression, or even panic
attacks, unless their feelings are assuaged early on in the separation by each parent. A separation or divorce
can also affect the extended family of a marriage. In some cases, the family members of each spouse may
feel like they have to take sides. The parents may also commit suicide due to these factors. Ten divorced men
commit suicide each day — a rate at least three times higher than that of divorced women. Divorced men
drink and smoke more often; they engage in riskier sex, and are more likely to avoid doctor visits and die of
preventable and treatable diseases. Divorce effects on men’s psychological and physical health can be
summed up in a word: “bad.” If the man in question is a father, a better word would be “horrible.”
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Why DIVORCE shouldn’t be legalized in the Philippines

 Divorce or dissolution of marriage is the ending of a marriage before the

death of either spouse.
 Divorce by definition divorce is a legislatively created, judicially administered
process that legally terminates a marriage no longer considered viable by one or
both of the spouses. Divorce is also known as dissolution of marriage.
Traditionally, divorce was fault based. In other words, there was an "innocent or
injured" party and a party that had done "wrong" with the "innocent" party
being able to obtain relief or a divorce. This system was adversarial in nature. Even
if both parties wanted a divorce, one party had to allege wrongdoing by the other.
In the 1970's this system was reformed and a "no fault" system was put in place.
 It is not the answer to the growing violence against women and children. Most
divorce advocates gives emphasis on the growing children and women abuse. It is
not a solution for these problems. In fact it extends to the growing problem of
immorality and sexually related diseases and problems such as unwanted
pregnancies and sexually related diseases. These problems are a threat to women,
children and even family. Simply because people were given the so-called choice
and chance to change while the fact is, it is where the so-called “rights” is abused.
It is where many people make use of the right and abuse it for their own self
centered selfish quest for happiness and will only bring them to the same situation
again and again and again. That’s why you will see people divorced not just once,
nor twice, but multiple times.
 It gives a wider path to domestic problems. This right has proven to be easily
abused. And we are not actually giving people a solution to their problems, but a
chance to repeat the same mistakes. Divorce is like a medicine… but not a
recommended one. For example, there is an abusive husband who have been
divorced by his wife. This husband will then just look for another woman to abuse.
While the woman if she’s the one having some problems, she will just look for
another guy and if things will not get well, all she has to do is to apply again for
divorce. It is just a picture of FREEDOM TO TRY MARRIAGE.
 It gives a wider path for immorality and marital infidelity. Greatest example is
the US. Did the stats of violence against women and children dropped by the use
of divorce law? We talk much about the positive things that we can get from the
divorce law, while the negative effects far outweighs the positive.
 It degrades the value of marriage. One of the reasons is that if you make divorce
an option for the couple, most of them who are not in a good marriage as of the
moment will go for divorce. By making it an option, you are encouraging people to
go on their separate ways rather than trying to work it out first. You ruin the
sanctity and value of marriage when you give options to easily break it apart.
 The problem is women and children are constantly getting abused, so if that is
the case, will separation be enough? I believe if we really want to end the problem
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regarding abuses, we should rather penalize the wrong actions. But most of all,
uplifting morals and values would be the long term key towards this problem.

THE DISCUSSION ON DIVORCE

Possible Questions

QUESTIONS A:

(1) What images spring to your mind when you hear the word ‘divorce’?
(2) Do you think that divorce is a sin?
(3) Do people get divorced too easily and quickly today?
(4) What are the main causes for people getting divorced?
(5) Why do you think divorce is higher in some countries than in ours?
(6) Who should get the children in a divorce?
(7) Should people sign a divorce agreement before they get married – like Hollywood
movie stars do?
(8) Should couples have to take marriage guidance counselling before they file for
divorce?
(9) What effect does divorce have on children?
(10) Is being divorced a social stigma in our country?

QUESTIONS B:

(1) Is divorce a big problem in our country?

(2) Imagine that you had been in the situation being divorced. Would you still
be friends with someone after you divorced them (or they divorced you)?

(3) Why are divorce rates increasing around the world?

(4) Should divorce settlements be fifty-fifty? And why is that?

(5) Why does many celebrity marriages end in divorce so quickly?

(6) What do you think of quickie divorces?

(7) Do you think divorce would be less common if couples lived together
before marriage?

(8) Does divorce mean part of you is a failure?

(9) Imagine that you are already an adult and looking for a partner. Would you
date someone who had been divorced several times?

(10 Do you think being a divorce lawyer would be a good job?

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