The Decline of the Family (6)

When parental authority is disrespected or openly rejected, the next phase will be exactly what Zimmerman says: greater and greater rebellion and sinful behavior in youth. How many stories can you think of about juveniles in murder trials? This is just the clear result of a deeper problem that has come to the surface. "Troubled teens" seems in modern America to be a protected minority as though it is "just the way things are".

Think of it this way: every child struggles to learn obedience, but in an orderly society that is not trying to commit suicide the rebels are usually the few, not the majority. Today, most people assume that teenagers will rebel and that they will reject what their parents say. I know many people who presume that it is impossible to have respectful and obedient teenagers. This is true if you do not even try, but the promiscuity and rebellion of children today is more a product of our societal degeneration than an automatic reality for everyone everywhere.

When societies degenerate, it is always accompanied by the stage of the children being led astray. Because the family is weakening, the help that children need, and the discipline that can keep them on the right track spiritually in life will be withheld. Disorder increases and those children who are left to themselves are experiencing the worst form of abuse. The consequences on our nation are clear.

More to follow...