Victorian family values are a myth, Archbishop tells Mothers’ Union

Sep 23, 2016 by

by John Bingham, Telegraph:

The idea of a Victorian golden age of traditional family values is a “myth”, the Archbishop of Canterbury has insisted as he urged Christians to face up to the reality of divorce, cohabitation and gay marriage in the 21st century.

The Most Rev Justin Welby, who argued in the House of Lords against the legislation extending marriage to same-sex couples, said new family structures  including same-sex unions are now a reality “whether we agree or not”.

His remarks came in a sermon to representatives of the Mothers’ Union (MU) from around the world at a special service in Winchester Cathedral to celebrate the organisation’s 140th anniversary.

Founded by Mary Sumner, a rector’s wife, in 1876, the Anglican-based group now has more than four million members in 83 countries.

In his address he singled out the MU’s formal aim of “supporting family life” at a time of rapid social change with attitudes to marriage and sex  almost unrecognisable within little more than a generation. But he said that the “myth” of stable Victorian values was “just that – mythology”.

“Family life in Victorian times was under great pressure, especially in the poorest parts of the country,” he said.

[…]  He emphasised that change was “not always bad” but said the pace of the transformation had left many groups including churches “living in a culture that they have not yet begun to come to terms with”.

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