How Important is Marriage?

The leaders of the Church often talk about the importance of marriage.  But what does the data actually say?  Well, this article seems to imply that marriage is very important to the rising generation.  In particular, stable families in the US are strongly connected to upward mobility, educational success, and general economic well being for families with children.  The fact is not lost on me that the importance of marriage seems to be more significant to children than to their parents.

While there are many examples of children raised by single parents that turned out fine, so to speak, it's also true that lack of two parents is statistically associated with a number of social, educational, and economic problems.  For me, that's the big message, and the divisive debate about gay marriage is largely a side show, distracting us from the real breakdown of marriage, the real attack on the family.