Duane Johnson

Strong Church, Strong State: The Marital Standard Foundation as a Solution

In our modern Republic, varying ideas of marriage are vying for a monopoly over the whole. Rather than struggle for dominance, minorities should unite to create a new kind of entity: the Marital Standard Foundation. Each such foundation would be commissioned with the legal authority to marry and the legal obligation to maintain healthy communities. There is general agreement from all segments of society that marriage should promote the well being of families while also granting social rights and responsibilities to mutually obligated adults

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. Historically, however, factions have tried to legislate marital morality on the underrepresented

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. One such minorityUtah’s Latter‐day Saintswas once targeted by federal legislation that sought to force the Latter‐day

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For example, the LGBT community, represented by the Family Equality Council states, “We envision a future where a ll families, regardless of creation or composition, will be able to live in communities that recognize, respect, protect, and celebrate them. We envision a country that celebrates a diversity of family constellations and respects individuals for supporting one another a nd sustaining loving families.” Similarly, the conservative LDS community has issued a proclamation that reads in part, “Husband and wife have a solemn responsibility to love and care for each other and for their children… Parents have a sacred duty to rear their children in love and righteousness, to provide for their physical and spiritual needs, to teach them to love and serve one another… [Governments should] maintain and strengthen the family as the fundamental unit of society”.

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