drbrumley
Well-known member
COVENANT MARRIAGES ON THE RISE IN ARKANSAS -- More Arkansas couples entered covenant marriages in the first 10 months of 2005 than in the three previous years combined, according to new data released about the popularity of the agreements aimed at curbing the divorce rate. Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee credited the promotion of covenant marriages with the marked increase, according to the Associated Press.
Huckabee and his wife led a celebration at Little Rock’s Alltel Arena on Valentine’s Day last year, when 6,400 people watched them renew their vows and enter a covenant marriage.
Five years ago, the Arkansas state government gave citizens the option of covenant marriages, which require premarital counseling and can be ended only after counseling and only on grounds of adultery, criminal activity, physical or sexual abuse or a two-year separation.
The overall goal of covenant marriage is to lower the state’s divorce rate, which is among the highest in the nation.
“It puts some speed bumps on the divorce process,” Huckabee told AP. “Every marriage isn’t going to survive, but this at least doesn’t make it as easy to give up on marriage.”
By the end of October last year, AP reported, 1,123 couples had either begun marriages as covenant marriages or converted their already existent marriages to covenant marriages, compared to 768 total covenant marriages in Arkansas from 2002 to 2004.
Covenant marriages are not limited to the state of Arkansas. For more information, visit www.covenantmarriage.com.
Huckabee and his wife led a celebration at Little Rock’s Alltel Arena on Valentine’s Day last year, when 6,400 people watched them renew their vows and enter a covenant marriage.
Five years ago, the Arkansas state government gave citizens the option of covenant marriages, which require premarital counseling and can be ended only after counseling and only on grounds of adultery, criminal activity, physical or sexual abuse or a two-year separation.
The overall goal of covenant marriage is to lower the state’s divorce rate, which is among the highest in the nation.
“It puts some speed bumps on the divorce process,” Huckabee told AP. “Every marriage isn’t going to survive, but this at least doesn’t make it as easy to give up on marriage.”
By the end of October last year, AP reported, 1,123 couples had either begun marriages as covenant marriages or converted their already existent marriages to covenant marriages, compared to 768 total covenant marriages in Arkansas from 2002 to 2004.
Covenant marriages are not limited to the state of Arkansas. For more information, visit www.covenantmarriage.com.
