As long as the economy is going well and people have good
jobs, they are content and willing to go along with the general flow of
affairs, right?
Well, maybe not so fast.
Apparently, there is something else that people are more concerned
about – family.
As long as the economy is going well and people have good
jobs, they are content and willing to go along with the general flow of
affairs, right?
Well, maybe not so fast.
Apparently, there is something else that people are more concerned
about – family.
And even more apparently, Americans understand that as the
family goes, so goes the country.
A new poll indicates strengthening families is more important
to Americans of all political persuasions than increased job opportunities or
a cleaner environment.
In the Wirthlin Worldwide survey, 64 percent of Americans said
they believe strengthening families is more significant than increasing more
meaningful job opportunities.
The recently-released poll also found 77 percent of respondents
consider stronger families as a more important policy priority than a cleaner
environment.
A strong majority gave the nod to families on both questions
regardless of party affiliation.
On the question about jobs, 61 percent of Democrats, 67 percent
of Republicans and 67 percent of independents said stronger families was a more
important issue. In contrast with a cleaner environment, 71 percent of Democrats,
86 percent of Republicans and 70 percent of independents chose strengthening
families as more significant.
The survey showed 92 percent of respondents agreed with the
statement: “We can only go forward in this country if families and family
values are strengthened.” However, 59 percent of Americans said they believe
the state of the family in this country is not strong at this time.
The poll found varying degrees of support for family-related
initiatives. For instance:
n 87 percent approved of encouraging businesses
to offer options such as flex time, job sharing and home-based work to strengthen
their workers marriages.
n 80 percent said they were in favor of recognizing
the media when they offer a truthful portrayal of the positive impact of marriage.
n 78 percent approved of requiring counseling
for couples with children before a divorce is granted.
n 76 percent agreed with reducing taxes for married
couples with children.
n 63 percent approved of increased tax incentives
for adoptions.
The poll of more than 1,000 adults was conducted for the Alliance
for Marriage, a nonpartisan, religiously-diverse coalition seeking to strengthen
the institution of marriage.
The last 30 years has taken a toll on marriage and the family,
Alliance Executive Director Matt Daniels insisted.
In that time, the divorce rate has doubled, the level of fatherless
families has tripled, and there has been a six-fold increase in the percentage
of births to unwed mothers, he said. One-third of American children are being
reared in fatherless families, he noted. “Unfortunately, there is an overwhelming
body of social-science data which shows that . . . these trends, if not reversed,
represent an expanding disaster for children and for this society,” Daniels
said.
The alliance is especially concerned about fatherlessness.
“(No) other social variable links more directly with our social problems
than fatherlessness,” Daniels said.
Among those social woes are violent crime, teenage pregnancy,
welfare dependency and child poverty, he said.
“You know, we decided as a nation that we were going to
put a man on the moon in the 60s. We focused on it; we did it,” Daniel
said. “Lets focus on reducing the percentage of fatherless families
in this nation by one-third over the next decade and make it a national priority.
“Fatherlessness is a completely curable social disease.
We have to restore what I call a culture of married fatherhood.
“Were challenging both (political) parties to put
this front and center in your agenda. This is bigger than partisan politics,”
he said.
It also is more important than other political issues –
and more and more people are realizing it.
Efforts are underway across the nation – from a variety
of groups – to strengthen families and help marriages last.
More and more evidence is indicating that divorce cannot remain
the standard in the nation. It eats away at the foundation of the country. It
destroys lives. It wrecks children.
Observers agree – whatever can be done must be done to
help families and to save marriages.
And the church must lead the way.
“Creating a family is an important responsibility and
opportunity,” George Barna wrote in “The Future of the American Family,”
a 1993 book on the subject.
“It is not a disposable relationship.”
Unfortunately, Barna emphasized that most people do not see
the church as having a positive impact on the family. That must change. “Each
church must be involved in efforts to support the family,” Barna stressed.
And there are specific things the church can do.
For one thing, it can teach Gods views on marriage, Barna
said. “The Bible clearly spells out Gods expectations regarding family.
It is the obligation of church leaders to ensure that their congregations are
well-informed about those truths.”
The church also must work to support families. That includes
sponsoring programs to educate young people, providing healthy entertainment
and activities, offering
models of healthy families, serving as a support system for
families in crisis and leading the way to help implement family-friendly laws
and policies.
“The church is the only institution left in our society
that consistently speaks out for family values,” Barna noted.
On the front end, churches can provide young adults with premarital
counseling and training. Observers note that in too many cases, couples are
married with little – or no – counseling or with a simple introductory
session with a pastor.
Numerous forces are lined up against the family, Barna and
others emphasize. Many traditional support systems – such as extended families
who live nearby – are gone.
That makes it all the more important for the church and other
concerned groups to do whatever they can to rescue families and ensure their
survival.
It is an opportunity the church must seize – the survival
of the nation as a whole is at stake.
“The vast majority of Americans care about the family,”
Barna concluded. “And deep down in their hearts, they seem to know that
as goes the family, so goes American society.
“The future of the family is not simply a matter of academic
interest; it is an issue that touches directly on the well-being of American
society itself.”
Now, the only question that remains is – what is the church
going to do about it? (BP)
(This article was combined by LBM Associate Editor C. Lacy
Thompson and includes information from a Baptist Press release and other materials
related to the family)