I like top 10 lists. I don’t know if late-night television popularized making “top” lists or not. But I would rather scan a “top” list than look through a long list any day. So when Peter Sprigg of the Family Research Council compiled a list of the top 10 articles worth reading from 2014, I was interested.

As I scanned his list I recognized most of the articles and their authors immediately. They were articles I had read throughout the year. And I can say that they are indeed worth reading. In fact, what I would suggest is that if you are wanting a strong education defending traditional marriage and the family, these articles will serve you very well.

As you peruse the following list of some of the best articles relating to marriage and family from 2014 I hope you will learn from the wisdom and knowledge of some of our culture’s most notable voices. There is more than just a philosophy being advanced here, there is a fundamental idea of what marriage is (and is not) and what the family is supposed to be. It this idea that is under attack and in need of those adhering to traditional values to arm themselves with facts – not rhetoric – and stand in defense.

Many thanks to Mr. Sprigg for compiling such a worthwhile list. Happy reading!

“The Rise of the Same-Sex Marriage Dissidents,” by Mollie Hemingway, The Federalist

Quote: “This is what marriage law was about. Not two friends building a house together. Or two people doing other sexual activities together. It was about the sexual union of men and women and a refusal to lie about what that union and that union alone produces: the propagation of humanity. This is the only way to make sense of marriage laws throughout all time and human history. Believing in this truth is not something that is wrong, and should be a firing offense.”

“Freedom to Marry, Freedom to Dissent: Why We Must Have Both,” A Public Statement, Real Clear Politics

Quote: “ . . . [W]e are concerned that recent events, including the resignation of the CEO of Mozilla under pressure because of an anti-same-sex- marriage donation he made in 2008, signal an eagerness by some supporters of same-sex marriage to punish rather than to criticize or to persuade those who disagree. We reject that deeply illiberal impulse, which is both wrong in principle and poor as politics.”

“Freedom to Marry & Dissent, Rightly Understood,” by Ryan T. Anderson and Robert P. George, Real Clear Policy

Quote: “The government should not discriminate against or coerce those who speak and act on the belief that marriage is the union of a man and a woman.”

“Opposing Gay Marriage Doesn’t Make You a Crypto-Racist,” by Jonathan Rauch, The Daily Beast

Quote: “Lots of people compare the opposition to gay marriage and the resistance to interracial relationships. It’s a flawed analogy.”

“The Evolution of Marriage,” by Ryan T. Anderson (review of Marriage and Civilization: How Monogamy Made Us Human, by William Tucker), National Review Online

Quote: “It is our sexual repressions that have made us human.”

“Were Christians Right About Gay Marriage All Along?” by Jay Michaelson, The Daily Beast

Quote: “According to a 2013 study, about half of gay marriages surveyed (admittedly, the study was conducted in San Francisco) were not strictly monogamous. This fact is well-known in the gay community—indeed, we assume it’s more like three-quarters. . . . [T]he future of marriage, in fact, may turn out to be a lot like the Christian Right’s nightmare . . .”

“Tracking Christian Sexual Morality in a Same-Sex Marriage Future,” by Mark Regnerus, Public Discourse

Quote: “Churchgoing Christians who support same-sex marriage are more likely to think pornography, cohabitation, hook-ups, adultery, polyamory, and abortion are acceptable.”

“The American Family Is Making a Comeback,” by Michael Wear, The Atlantic

Quote: “As the costs of family breakdown become even more apparent, Democrats’ no-judgment approach may seem insufficient in the face of a demographic and sociological tidal wave.”

“The Myth of Homosexuality in Nature,” by James B. Connelly, BarbWire

Quote: “Properly speaking, homosexuality does not exist among animals…. For reasons of survival, the reproductive instinct among animals is always directed towards an individual of the opposite sex. Therefore, an animal can never be homosexual as such. Nevertheless, the interaction of other instincts (particularly dominance) can result in behavior that appears to be homosexual. Such behavior cannot be equated with an animal homosexuality.”

“Seven Things I Wish My Pastor Knew About My Homosexuality,” by Jean Lloyd, Public Discourse

Quote: “Continue to love me, but remember that you cannot be more merciful than God. It isn’t mercy to affirm same-sex acts as good. Practice compassion according to the root meaning of ‘compassion’: Suffer with me. Don’t compromise truth; help me to live in harmony with it.”