Religious and non-religious teachings on the nature and purpose of marriage, divorce and remarriage, the family, and gender equality and roles.

What this dot point is asking

Eduqas wants you to explain religious and non-religious teachings on the nature and purpose of marriage, divorce and remarriage, the family, and gender equality and roles, from Christian, Islamic and non-religious (including Humanist) perspectives. This is the heart of the Issues of Relationships theme. It feeds 15-mark evaluation questions on divorce and on gender roles, so you need the content, both religions' views, the range within each, and the sources of wisdom and authority Eduqas rewards.

The nature and purpose of marriage

Christians often regard marriage as a sacrament (Catholics, Orthodox) or sacred covenant reflecting God's love, citing "what God has joined together, let no one separate" (Mark 10:9). In Islam, marriage is a sacred contract (nikah), strongly encouraged and described as completing "half of faith". Humanists value committed, loving partnerships too, but see marriage as a human commitment rather than a sacred one.

Divorce and remarriage

This range is exactly what the evaluation question on divorce tests: the sanctity and permanence of marriage against compassion and the reality of breakdown.

The family and gender

Religious traditions see the family as the foundation of society and faith: it exists to love and raise children, provide stability, pass on faith and values, and care for relatives (Christians cite "honour your father and mother", Exodus 20:12; Muslims, "be dutiful to your parents", Surah 17:23). They recognise different types (nuclear, extended, single-parent, blended), often valuing the extended family.

On gender, most believers teach that men and women are equal in worth before God, because both are made in God's image (Christianity) or created from a single soul and judged equally by Allah (Islam, Surah 33:35), and so condemn sexism. But traditions differ on roles: some hold that equality of worth allows different, complementary roles (for example a traditional emphasis on the husband as provider and the wife in the home), while others, and most of modern society including Humanists, argue for identical roles and full equality.

Common and divergent views

The common view is that marriage and the family are valuable, that men and women are equal in worth, and that discrimination is wrong. The divergences are over divorce (Catholic permanence versus Protestant, Orthodox and Islamic acceptance as a last resort) and over gender roles (complementary roles versus identical roles). For the exam, present the value of marriage and equality of worth as widely shared, and treat divorce and gender roles as the contested points, including the Humanist view.

Try this

Q1. What is an annulment? [a-style recall]

• Cue. A declaration by the Roman Catholic Church that a marriage was never validly formed; it is not the same as divorce, which the Catholic Church does not recognise.

Q2. Explain how a Muslim and a Catholic might view divorce differently. [b-style short explanation]

• Cue. Islam permits divorce as a last resort after attempts at reconciliation, though it is "the most hated of permitted things"; the Catholic Church regards marriage as permanent and does not recognise divorce, granting only annulments, so for Catholics remarriage in church is not normally allowed while the first spouse lives.