# Singles: Marriage with sex, or single life with celibacy? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 5, 2009, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/singles-marriage-with-sex-or-single-life-with-celibacy/520108 "2009-12-05T18:16:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![BrotherCadfael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@BrotherCadfael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrotherCadfael)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2010, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/singles-marriage-with-sex-or-single-life-with-celibacy/520108/41 "2010-03-12T17:29:23Z")
> [@Chessic\_Sense](#): > > The gay man dislikes “marriage to a woman” because of the woman, while the straight man dislikes it because of the marriage. _“I don’t wanna marry Agnes, Barney. It ain’t the marryin’ part, it’s the Agnes part!”_ –Inspector Lugar, _Barney Miller_ (For the full effect, when you read this quote, you should pronounce Agnes as Ag-a-ness: _“I don’t wanna marry Ag-a-ness, Baaney. It ain’t the marryin’ pat, it’s the Ag-a-ness pot!”_) ---
**Author:** ![Perciful](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b38774/32.png) [@Perciful](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Perciful)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2010, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/singles-marriage-with-sex-or-single-life-with-celibacy/520108/42 "2010-03-13T18:15:28Z")
> [@BrotherCadfael](#): > > _“I don’t wanna marry Agnes, Barney. It ain’t the marryin’ part, it’s the Agnes part!”_ > –Inspector Lugar, _Barney Miller_ > (For the full effect, when you read this quote, you should pronounce Agnes as Ag-a-ness: _“I don’t wanna marry Ag-a-ness, Baaney. It ain’t the marryin’ pat, it’s the Ag-a-ness pot!”_) Very good! Made me laugh. ---
**Author:** ![Electric\_Warrior](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee7513/32.png) [@Electric\_Warrior](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Electric_Warrior)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2010, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/singles-marriage-with-sex-or-single-life-with-celibacy/520108/43 "2010-03-13T19:45:10Z")
I think there’s a flaw in this poll. It assumes that people who are single are not interested in marriage, or that the idea of enforced monogamy is off-putting. ---
**Author:** ![Rala](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@Rala](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rala)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2010, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/singles-marriage-with-sex-or-single-life-with-celibacy/520108/44 "2010-03-14T15:21:37Z")
> [@Electric\_Warrior](#): > > I think there’s a flaw in this poll. It assumes that people who are single are not interested in marriage, or that the idea of enforced monogamy is off-putting. This. I don’t know which option to pick on the poll. Neither of them work for me. I would do exactly what I’m doing in real life, and remain single and celibate until/unless I find the man I want to marry. “Book the chapel! I can’t imagine never getting laid again” is out because I’m not in any rush to get married, and if I do decide I want to it will be for reasons besides sex. On the other hand, “Marriage? Aw, hell no! I’ll fly solo, in life and in bed” doesn’t come close to reflecting my attitude - I’d very much like to marry one day, when/if I’m ready and have found the right guy. ---
**Author:** ![aerie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e9a140/32.png) [@aerie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aerie)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2010, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/singles-marriage-with-sex-or-single-life-with-celibacy/520108/45 "2010-03-15T21:02:36Z")
Is there an option to tell the RCC to mind it’s own business? I’ll marry, date, love, have sex with, who I want and when I want. I’m smart enough and moral enough to do decide what’s best for myself. I really don’t understand this blind devotion bronze age religion, forced morality and dogma. ---
**Author:** ![Malacandra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Malacandra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malacandra)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2010, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/singles-marriage-with-sex-or-single-life-with-celibacy/520108/46 "2010-03-16T22:55:33Z")
> [@aerie](#): > > Is there an option to tell the RCC to mind it’s own business? I’ll marry, date, love, have sex with, who I want and when I want. I’m smart enough and moral enough to do decide what’s best for myself. I really don’t understand this blind devotion {to} bronze age religion, forced morality and dogma. The hypothetical wasn’t about the RCC, although it seems to have arisen out of a discussion about it among other things. Otherwise, I’d guess you have the option to be a member of the Church or not, but if you want to be in the club, then as far as the Church is concerned it _is_ their business, and you _aren’t_ smart and moral enough, and nor is anyone else who thinks they can ignore the Church’s teaching and make up their own mind. Incidentally, I don’t think you could call the RCC “bronze age religion”; they take the view AIUI (and IANALF) that the Church has the ability and the authority to make pronouncements on its own account, not merely reiterate what’s in the Bible. So some of it’s mediaeval, at least, and some of it more modern than that. ---
**Author:** ![aerie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e9a140/32.png) [@aerie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aerie)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2010, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/singles-marriage-with-sex-or-single-life-with-celibacy/520108/47 "2010-03-17T03:44:48Z")
> [@Malacandra](#): > > The hypothetical wasn’t about the RCC, although it seems to have arisen out of a discussion about it among other things. Otherwise, I’d guess you have the option to be a member of the Church or not, but if you want to be in the club, then as far as the Church is concerned it _is_ their business, and you _aren’t_ smart and moral enough, and nor is anyone else who thinks they can ignore the Church’s teaching and make up their own mind. > > Incidentally, I don’t think you could call the RCC “bronze age religion”; they take the view AIUI (and IANALF) that the Church has the ability and the authority to make pronouncements on its own account, not merely reiterate what’s in the Bible. So some of it’s mediaeval, at least, and some of it more modern than that. Thanks Malacandra, Being from the South, of course I grew up evangelical Southern Baptist. Ugh. I left all religion last year. Doing great. Don’t miss it. Never had much experience in any type of Catholic Church. Of Course I was aware of their powerful postion globally. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/singles-marriage-with-sex-or-single-life-with-celibacy/520108.md?page=2)