Of course they do okay. It's hard to be a single parent, with no one to pass the kid off to when you need to have a break or be doing something else, but wonderful people are the result of lots of different family structures.

If we're talking same-sex couples, their children do just fine as well. There is some indication that children of lesbian couples do slightly better at school, on average. In fact, the only unique challenge facing children of same-sex couples, is religious bigotry.

So, instead of fighting against same-sex marriage (which is idiotic), let's fight against religious bigots who are stupid enough to try to tell same-sex couples that their family life is "less than ideal" for the kids. 

Down with bigotry! Up with people!

Well said somegal.

Rich blessings.

While single parents, and couples, do a fine job raising children, let's not forget grandparents. 

My children had only one living grandparent, and she lived some distance away.  I was vaguely aware that my children were missing this connection in their lives, but it was only after we became grandparents ourselves that I realized how important we were in parental support.

Seelergirl was a single parent for the first five years of granddaughter's life.  They lived with us.  Seelergirl went back to college and then to work, and during the day I became the chief caregiver, while stepping back and non-interfering when Seelergirl got home.  Child care was a full time job.  

When Seelergirl married Granddaughter's father and moved out, I still provided after-school and emergency care.  This week I've been watching Grandson (8 years old and out of school with a cold) and checking in on Granddaughter (16 and in bed with the flu). 

Don't discount the value of grandparents in family life.

(ps  Don't rely on them to help Grade 3 kids with their math homework.  They do it differently now.)

Yeah, love thy neighbor, while actively working to prevent him or her from being happy because your invisible sky daddy told you to. Fark off.

I grew up with a single mother. Surrounding us were my grandparents, aunts and uncles, cousins, etc. I think I did OK.

My bias is that I've been a single mom for 13 years and my kids are pretty typical!

I met one of your kids Tabitha, and he seemed pretty decent, considering......

Thank you for your lucid, informed, sensitive, thoughtfully considered and intelligent comment, Chansen. "Fark off," is a very helpful contribution to any discourse.

You'll be aware of course that same-sex weddings are matter of course in many UCC churches. Sexual bigotry is not a purely or simply religious issue: it's a widespread social problem, like racism and other varieties of …ism.

Mike, go to any church that doesn't allow same-sex weddings, and ask them why not? Do you think ANY of them are going to come up with a reason OTHER than a scriptural one?

Meanwhile, you'd have to hunt to find a humanist chaplain who wouldn't officiate at a same-sex wedding, if you could find one at all.

It's primarily biblically-based bigotry. And you guys - the most liberal Christian denomination in Canada, haven't even cleared this hurdle yet. On top of that, the gay ordination issue nearly split you guys back in the 80's.

And once again, if you ask the people against gay ordination or same-sex weddings, why they are against them, you're gonna get a reply from scripture. You can pretend that makes it a social problem, but that just makes it a biblically-based social problem.

.... a biblically based social problem .......   I agree.....

I was once part of that as well ...... just for the record.....

Yes ... the UCC is not totally accepting and there is quite a ways to go.... agreed...

I for one am so happy that I found a denomination that is willing to tackle the problem.

chansen .... you raise a lot of good points here and were it not for my own personal experience I also would be doubting the existence of God.    I know .... it's personal, subjective, non-testable, and possibly delusional.    Yes ... I said delusional.....

But deep down I find the experience to be real and I will go with that.

My problem is sorting out the "Brainy Smurfs" from those with something worthwhile to say....

Thank you for helping with that....

Sincere Regards

Rita

"Invisible sky daddy"
"Holy Hall Monitor"
"no supernatural God"
 

 It is all stuff said and wrote about decades ago.
 

They are not all Hitchens and Dawkins.

Many who have said it and say it are believers.....

They says "God is not male" or "God is not 'up'"....

I was just reading this very morning,
"Many (dare I say most?) Christians live their lives as though they're going to be graded once a year by a God who stands there frowning, with his hands stuck in the pockets of his robe. (I don't know why, but probably most people usually think of God with a robe on, never in sweats or cutoffs or a swimsuit... He's always wearing a beard and this white robe) Glaring he says, "Well, Johnson that gets a C-."  And, "Dorothy, you ought to be ashamed!" And, "Smith? Not bad. Could've been better though." What heretical imaginations we have.
Why do we think like that? Who is responsible for such horror-images of the Almighty?..."

Who wrote those words? An atheist? Uber-liberal writer? UCC clergy? MCC?.....

Nope.

Charles R. Swindoll, evangelical pastor, wrote those words.