Two Unmarried seniors living together

Two Unmarried seniors living together
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Morals are the principles that govern our actions, behavior, and how we perceive whether what we are doing is right or wrong. Cohabiting is a complex topic because more couples over the years have disregarded marriage and chosen to live together, yet religious teachings and morals are against this practice. The rates of divorced or widowed senior couples who opt to cohabit with their newfound love are also on the rise. This essay analyzes the trends in cohabiting, the reasons why older couples are cohabiting and the moral issues revolving around the matter of cohabiting.According to an article in the New York Times, in 2010 about 2.8 million people above 50 years were cohabiting (Luxenberg, 2014). The cohabiting relationship of Sara and Ben is immoral because by cohabiting they are hurting their children who disapprove of their living arrangement as some of them have even refused to communicate with or visit them. Traditional societal beliefs consider cohabiting morally wrong because it promotes infidelity, divorce rates, and a lack of commitment between couples. The increasing number of single parents in our society due to the separation of cohabiting couples is a good example of the adverse effects that are associated with cohabiting.
By not committing themselves to each other in marriage while having a sexual relationship, Sara and Ben are living in sin. Most of our moral values and beliefs are obtained from a religious background.

In most religions, fornication is considered morally incorrect. While Sara and Ben are happy with their relationship, they are going against the moral values of the society. They are also setting a bad example to their children and grandchildren, which might explain why some of their children refuse to interact with them.

Just like Sara and Ben, more couples are choosing cohabitation over marriage because of the fear of loss of social security benefits. An article in The Patriot Ledger outlined some of the financial reasons as to why senior couples prefer cohabitation. They include a loss of retirement benefits from the military, fear of being stuck with the medical expenses of a partner, increased tax rates, protection of one’s assets and social security benefits (Collins, 2014). The evasion of taxes by choosing not to get married is unlawful and morally incorrect.
Some couples justify cohabiting with the belief that as long as they are committed to each other marriage vows are of no importance. The importance of moral values has also depreciated due to the changing times making different types of relationships such as gay relationships, cohabitation, and single-parent families more acceptable. Thus, others will view the cohabitating relationship as morally right. The comfort of unshared medical expenses, which may pose a problem for couples when one of them becomes terminally ill is one of the reasons why more senior couples prefer cohabitating (Luxenberg, 2014). Couples also worry that they may lose some of their valuable assets such as their home and business if they merge their finances and assets. In case one of them dies, the other might face the challenge of losing all their assets to other members of the family determined to get their hands on the inheritance.
Moral values have been tainted with increasing cohabitation. If a couple loves each other, they should get married regardless of financial constraints and the need to protect individual assets as this will uphold law and morality. This essay has analyzed the trends in cohabiting, the reasons why older couples are cohabiting and the moral issues revolving around the matter of cohabiting.
References
Collins, L.M. (2014, May 1). Financial Penalties May Quell Senior Citizens’ Desire to Take a Trip Down the Aisle. The Patriot Ledger. Retrieved from http://www.patriotledger.com/article/20140501/news/305019923Luxenberg, S. (2014, April 25). Welcoming Love at an Older Age, but not Necessarily marriage. The New York Times. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/26/your-money/welcoming-love-at-an-older-age-but-not-necessarily-marriage.html?_r=0