“These days we hear alot of people say that marriage is out of fashion,marriage is overrated,etc.. Some say that it is not worth making a life-long commitment, making a definitive decision to be with just one person ‘forever’, because we do not know what tomorrow will bring. 

oftentimes we choose to be revolutionaries, we decide to swim against the tide, we practically decide to rebel against this culture that sees everything as temporary and that ultimately believes we are incapable of responsibility, this culture that believes we are incapable of true love. A love that can last forever.

 I will like us to look at five power quotes of pope Francis about marriage and then we get to decide if marriage is truly overrated.

 1: Pope Francis while Addressing the  Community of Varginha (Manguinhos) says: 

“Dear friends, it is certainly necessary to give bread to the hungry, this is an act of justice. But there is also a deeper hunger, the hunger for a happiness that only God can satisfy, the hunger for dignity. There is neither real promotion of the common good nor real human development when there is ignorance of the fundamental pillars that govern a nation, its non-material goods: life, which is a gift of God, a value always to be protected and promoted; the family, the foundation of coexistence and a remedy against social fragmentation; integral education, which cannot be reduced to the mere transmission of information for the purposes of generating profit; health, which must seek the integral well-being of the person, including the spiritual dimension, essential for human balance and healthy coexistence; security, in the conviction that violence can be overcome only by changing human hearts.”

 2: During the feast of Sts Joachim and Anne in Brazil the pope also addressed the Brazilian church saying: 

“How precious is the family as the privileged place for transmitting the faith! Speaking about family life, I would like to say one thing: today, as Brazil and the Church around the world celebrate this feast of Saints Joachim and Anne, Grandparents Day is also being celebrated. How important grandparents are for family life, for passing on the human and religious heritage which is so essential for each and every society! How important it is to have intergenerational exchanges and dialogues, especially within the context of the family.”

3: The pope also had an  Interview on Radio Catedral (radio broadcasting station of the Archdiocese of Rio de Janeiro): where he further buttressed that

 “Not only would I say that the family is important for the evangelization of the new world. The family is important, and it is necessary for the survival of humanity. Without the family, the cultural survival of the human race would be at risk. The family, whether we like it or not, is the foundation.”

 4: In his address to the World Youth Day Volunteers the pope encourages youths on family life when he told them: 

“God calls you to make definitive choices, and he has a plan for each of you: to discover that plan and to respond to your vocation is to move forward toward personal fulfillment. God calls each of us to be holy, to live his life, but he has a particular path for each one of us. Some are called to holiness through family life in the sacrament of Marriage. Today, there are those who say that marriage is out of fashion. Is it out of fashion? In a culture of relativism and the ephemeral, many preach the importance of ‘enjoying’ the moment. They say that it is not worth making a life-long commitment, making a definitive decision, ‘for ever’, because we do not know what tomorrow will bring. I ask you, instead, to be revolutionaries, I ask you to swim against the tide; yes, I am asking you to rebel against this culture that sees everything as temporary and that ultimately believes you are incapable of responsibility, that believes you are incapable of true love. I have confidence in you and I pray for you. Have the courage ‘to swim against the tide’. And also have the courage to be happy.”

5: Finally in the Pope's Address to the Bishops of Brazil he says: “In mission, also on a continental level, it is very important to reaffirm the family, which remains the essential cell of society and the Church; young people, who are the face of the Church’s future; women, who play a fundamental role in passing on the faith and who are a daily source of strength in a society that carries this faith forward and renews it.”

In summary, family life is the bedrock of the society, we are encouraged to see the beauty in starting a family and building it's foundation on the teaching of the church.