Our government is actually supposed to be a government of the people and for the benefit of the people, as opposed to being an entity that demands obeisance of its policies by the people in order to receive benefits from it. More than anything, government wants unquestioning loyalty from its subjects, for loyal subjects that are compliant are far easier to lead and to control, thereby making those that are its leaders, quite powerful , safe, and rich, through taxation, conditions, and laws that favor those in power.
This means, that our present-day government looks somewhat askance at areas of influence that they do not control, such as the nuclear family as well as religious faith, for those that have divided loyalties, or even worse, are loyal to beliefs that are not foremost governmental preferred in nature, reflect people that are far less easier to fool and may hesitate in following the prevailing governmental line in their activities.
The greatest threat to any government is one's religious faith, for reasons both good and bad. Certainly, there are religious faiths that are inimical to government, for they preach the word that the faithful must adhere to their religion first and foremost, and must thereby live their lives in conformance to that faith, and when put to the test by secular authorities, they must choose first their faith, above all. On the other hand, there are plenty of mainstream religions which if not exactly in complete lockstep with governmental desires and policies, are close enough to it, and are thereby able to preach the word in such a manner that good religious people will see the government and their religion as quite compatible. This type of religious belief is the preferred form of all governments, for if you are able to indoctrinate your subjects through governmental schools and policies, as well as being helped in such indoctrination by religious faith and beliefs than the two will join themselves together for the supposed benefit of the nation.
When it comes to the nuclear family, the government has over a long period of time, aggrandized unto itself, more and more of the patriarchal role, so that food, shelter, pensions, housing, education, and so on and so forth, are either directly or indirectly provided by or subsidized by the government and its agencies or are heavily influenced by them. This means that the family unit is disrupted in the sense that the responsibilities that a parent has to their children, as well as the obligation that children have to their aged parents, has become something that the government has impacted through its ubiquitous welfare state, so that parents and children rather than being dependent upon each other, as a family unit, instead are too often dependent upon the governmental welfare state, which gets its power, influence, and money from the labor of the people.
The government wants to be it all to as many people as possible, so that they are perceived to be the great provider; not God, and not our biological connections through bloodlines. This means that our independence, freedom, faith, and family ties, are being subsumed by our government, so that we can serve that government for the benefit of that government, and in return, receive rather paltry returns and for far too many live lives of quiet desperation.