Marriage and Family as Christian and European Values

Abstract

The study overviews the basic international human rights instruments on marriage and the family. By grouping their provisions according to their substantive content, it seeks to draw a conclusion as to the nature of the protection of the two social phenomena under international law. It then reviews the extent to which marriage and family can be seen as essential components of European culture. Starting from the conception of marriage in Old Testament, the Jewish and Roman imperial law, it presents the contemporary universal  and domestic ecclesiastical conception after reviewing the rules of the Catholic Church, which conveys these values. As a result, the study concludes that the European culture is based on the conception of marriage and family presented. The rejection of these values would be either impossible or would create another culture.