There's no marriage police, but Mormons do get monthly home visits from someone in the church, and if something seems out of whack in the marriage, the bishop will be alerted.
9. They believe children create happy, stable marriages.
"Children are important to the marriage because of the joy they bring into our lives," Fuller said. "It's our belief that that joy will continue through eternity."
10. They forget about "Monday Night Football" or "Ally McBeal."
Mormon families have what they call "family home evenings," usually on Mondays. That's when the TV goes off, and the family either tackles a spiritual lesson or simply plays board games and eats treats.
"If you handled it well," Fuller said, "it's an irreplaceable bonding experience for the whole family."
The best insight on Mormon temple marriages comes from someone who should know: 76-year-old Helen Stay, who's been married to Jesse for 57 years. The Huntington Beach couple have seven children, 47 grandchildren and 30 great-grandchildren.
"The secret to marriage is you really need to love each other and have the same ideals," Helen said. "For us, our faith means we'll be mates forever."
William Lobdell, editor of Times Community News, looks at faith as a regular contributor to The Times' Orange County religion page. His e-mail address is bill.lobdell@latimes.com.
