1. CHAPTER 17 Morality Today

2. In the evening, about an hour or so before we go to bed, my wife and I like to watch a movie. But movies have gotten so raunchy, we have gone to recording TV programs so we can watch them without commercials – sort of like a movie. Here are some we’ve seen. We have seen House, which depicts an atheist (or God hating) doctor who goes out of his way to make fun of anyone who believes in life after death, with several shows aimed especially at making fun of Orthodox Jews and Bible believing Christians. We’ve seen Bones, which features an atheist lady who takes every opportunity to mock Christianity and every religious or moral tradition – like Christmas and marriage.

3. We have seen Criminal Minds, a show about a team of FBI agents who solve especially difficult cases. Every show quotes some godless philosopher, but recently they solved a case where a young man was killing homosexual men. Turns out he was a homosexual himself, but he was raised in an evangelical Christian home where his father taught him homosexuality was a sin. This warped the boy into hating who he was, so he transferred that hatred to his victims, then killed them. The leader of the FBI team made a special point of criticizing the boy’s Christian father for making his son into a gay hater. Bottom line—evangelical Christianity was really responsible for the murders. Oh, and did I forget to mention, one of the girls on the FBI team is pregnant with her boyfriend, and the leader of the team just got a divorce because his job is more important than his family. But that’s okay because he told his very young son that he loved him. In nearly every program on public television, lying is good and ends up solving some significant issue. Nearly every hero or heroin is having regular, out-of-marriage, sexual intercourse. But it’s okay, actually considered good, right, and faithful, as long as it is with only one partner at a time. A prude, geek, or warped weirdo is one who has not had extramarital sex … in a while.

4. Or the weirdo or psychopath is warped because he or she is a born again Christian who reads the Bible. But it is good to be a Koran-reading Muslim, and really cool to be a Buddhist, especially if you are into karate or something that you use to kill people as an alternative to guns. Nearly every hero/heroin is divorced, unless they are too young or too professional to be married. Then they are just having sex with someone. So we decided to watch the “News.” There we learned the California Supreme Court [Justices pictured here] legalized gay marriage, another teacher was having sex with one of her students, and a bunch of kids at a public school dance were simulating having various kinds of sex on the dance floor, with teachers and administrators watching and doing nothing (our public school tax dollars at work). Turn on the news today and you can add to this list.

5. Divorce, Remarriage, and Cohabitation I shall give a few selective quotes, which will give us the idea of what is acceptable morality today. On March 30, 2006, Monika Mynarska wrote this— The spread of non-marital relationships has occurred at a different pace across Europe (Carmichael, 1995; Kiernan, 2000, 2002; Nazio & Blossfeld, 2003): In the Nordic countries, like Sweden and Denmark, consensual unions are as common as formal marriages. In the Mediterranean region (Greece, Italy, Portugal, Spain), by contrast, the level of cohabitation is extremely low and there is still no agreement among researchers whether this part of Europe will follow the Nordic example or not (e.g., see Rosina, 2004; Rosina, Fraboni, 2004). Similar doubts have been expressed for Poland, a country that records one of the lowest levels of cohabitation in Europe. According to the National Census, informal marriages accounted for 2.2% of all marriages in 2002; this compares to 1.7% in 1995 and 1.3% in 1988 (Slany, 2002). Princeton.edu/download.aspx?session=252 In Europe

6. In England David Phillips writes concerning Britain: April saw the release of the most recent Social Trends statistics. Some of these make grim reading and demonstrate the problems we face in modern Britain and how Christian standards are being eroded in national life. More than 4 in every 10 children were born to couples who are unmarried at the time of the birth. There were almost as many divorces in 2005 (155,000) as there were first marriages (171,000). The total number of marriages has kept up in large part because of re- marriages. The number of first marriages is less than half what it was in 1971, despite overall population growth. Cross†Way Issue Summer 2007 No. 105 Statistics That Show The State We Are In, by David Phillips.

7. In Poland Polish Radio – External Service issued this announcement on April 1, 2008: According to demographers, half a million marriages in Poland are already living separately and the number may increase within the next two years by another 200,000. Also, those leaving for Britain and Ireland declare they want to spend some 3 to 5 years there, which is a long test for a marriage. Sociologists and psychologists point to massive emigrations of Poles seeking better jobs abroad as a reason behind it while demographers alarm that every third so called "emigration family" will eventually split. Marriages in Poland are currently terminated in big numbers not only in civil courts but are also annulled in church. [Graph shows the divorce rate in Poland 1999-2004 (www.wrotapodlasia.pl).]

8. In Spain Spain has the highest divorce rate in Europe. We read: A survey by Spain’s Institute of Family Politics has found that Spain has the highest divorce rate in Europe. Three out of every four Spanish marriages now end in divorce. In 2006, there were 142,000 divorces in the country. In 2005, Spain’s governing Socialist coalition passed legislation liberalizing access to divorce, bringing a jump in the number of broken marriages. [guardduty.wordpress.com/2007/05/31/report-spain-shows-highest-divorce- rate/.] Monitoring the Future Newsletter, December 2007, reported on a 30 year study they have done on the views of American high school seniors. They wrote: Since 1976, “Monitoring the Future” has asked high school seniors about their opinion on marriage and cohabitation. Wanting to see how things have changed, if any, over the last thirty years regarding young people’s thoughts on this subject.… There has been a substantial increase in teens’ acceptance of living together before marriage (cohabitation). The figure rose from less than 40% in 1980 to more than 60% [by 2007]. … the females [had] the largest increase in the proportion who share this opinion (from 33% in 1976 to 61% in 2007). In America

9. … the trend shown in the chart is supported by sufficient evidence. Although the data on which the chart is based are neither uniform nor precise, there is little doubt about the general pattern the chart displays. It indicates that at the beginning of the century, most American women entered their first marriages as virgins. At the end of the century, The cohabitation of unmarried couples became common in the last decades of the century. Then they asked about the statement: Marriage leads to fuller and happier lives rather than staying single or living together. Between 1976 and 2007 the percentage of boys agreeing to that statement stayed approximately the same at around 40%. But the percentage of girls agreeing with it dropped about 10% from just below 40% to around 30% in 2007. The First Measured Century by Theodore Caplow, Louis Hicks and Ben J. Wattenberg evaluated the 1900s. On thing they concluded was: At the beginning of the century, very few women were sexually active before marriage. By the end of the century, most of them were. They provide the following graphs and comments: about one-quarter of them did. In the second half of the century, some of this difference may have reflected the tendency of women to marry at later ages than they did earlier in the century. But from 1900 to 1960, the increase in premarital sex occurred at the same time as a drop in the average age of first marriage.

10. While the chart represents a time series of cross-sections, data from longitudinal surveys provide a more in-depth look at this trend. The 1987–1988 National Survey of Families and Households, for example, found that 44 percent of those who married between 1980 and 1984 had cohabited with someone beforehand. The 1995 National Survey of Family Growth found that 51 percent of women aged thirty to thirty- four had cohabited before marriage or were cohabiting at the time of the survey.

11. At the end of the century, a large proportion of newlyweds lived together before the wedding with the full knowledge of their relatives and friends. Many cohabiting couples rented an apartment or purchased a house together with no more difficulty than married couples. [Photo and graphs from The First Measured Century (www.pbs.org/fmc/book/4f amily1.htm).]

12. The University of Michigan The following is an actual course offered at the University of Michigan [campus pictured here]: English 317. Literature and Culture Section 002 – How to be Gay: Male Homosexuality and Initiation Credits: (3; 2 in the half-term). Instructor(s): David M. Halperin (halperin@umich.edu)halperin@umich.edu Homosexual Tolerance, or the Intolerance of Homosexual Intolerance

13. Course Description: … This course will examine the general topic of the role that initiation plays in the formation of gay male identity. We will approach it from three angles: (1) as a sub-cultural practice …; (2) as a theme in gay male writing; and (3) as a class project, since the course itself will constitute an experiment in the very process of initiation that it hopes to understand. … At the core of gay experience there is not only identification but disidentification. Almost as soon as I learn how to be gay, or perhaps even before, I also learn how not to be gay. I say to myself, “Well, I may be gay, but at least I’m not like that!” Rather than attempting to promote one version of gay identity at the expense of others, this course will investigate the stakes in gay identifications and disidentifications, seeking ultimately to create the basis for a wider acceptance of the plurality of ways in which people determine how to be gay. [University of Michigan News Service, January 9, 2008. I have included only about one half of the “Course Description].

14. The graph is from the Gallup Poll organization which asked Americans if they thought marriages between same-sex couples should be as legally valid as traditional marriages: www.gallup.com/poll/ 107305Ruling-SameSex-Mar… Gallup Poll

15. Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear issued an executive order earlier this month adding the phrase "sexual orientation or gender identity" to the non-discrimination policy for state employees. Peter LaBarbera with Americans for Truth about Homosexuality says: When you create rights based on homosexuality, you're making it harder to fire homosexuals who do a bad job … We know that homosexual activists are not shy to sue -- and we know now that there's no problem of homosexuals getting fired from jobs. The people getting fired from jobs these days are conservative Christians who oppose homosexuality … There's no rash of homosexual firings... this is all a myth. And it's designed to propel homosexual power forward. They know that if they get the protections put in place by a governor, the next step is they want to get them passed by the legislature. So it's all about incremental 'gay' politics …" http://www.onenewsnow.com/Politics/Defalt.aspx?id=135644 The Governor of Kentucky Steve Beshear Americans for Truth about Homosexuality

16. Central Europe Review, August 1999, reports: Homosexuality is gradually becoming a phenomenon which the Western world accepts as a natural part of human existence. In Central and Eastern Europe [however]… this is hardly the case…. In the case of the more devout countries in the region, Poland for example, traditional religious beliefs would seem to be exerting their influence … Same-Sex Marriage in Europe

17. In this photo, The purple nations have legalized same-sex marriage. They include Belgium, Spain, The Netherlands. This is in addition to Canada and South Africa, which have also legalized same-sex marriage. The blue nations have legalized same-sex civil unions and equal registered partnerships. They include: Andorra, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Iceland, Luxembourg, Norway Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland United Kingdom. This is in addition to New Zealand and Uruguay.

18. The yellow nations are currently taking this issue into political consideration. The orange nations, such as ours, have no constitutional bans on same-sex rights but only because they have not been brought as of yet to the forefront for debate. Finally, The red nations are those who have passed legislation to ban same- sex marriages and civil unions. They include: Latvia, Lithuania, Yugoslavia. [The quote and map are from www.city- data.com/politics-other-contro…]

19. Worldview Weekend reports this. Glitzy brochures and slick websites that promote many of our universities don't divulge the all-encompassing secular worldview that slashes God from every equation and consumes ill-prepared students. But collegians today will face many of the: 67% of professors who approve of homosexuality 84% who condone abortion 65% who embrace socialist and communist ideals The results of four years' exposure to these teachers are staggering. Recent research reveals that 91% of students from evangelical churches no longer believe in absolute moral truth. Even the Southern Baptist Convention found that 88% of young people from SBC homes slip away from the faith before they graduate from college. Quote and statistics from worldviewweekend.com, May 28, 2008 The Education Salvation

20. “World View Weekend” reports: Over 4400 children a day are murdered. www.christianworldviewnetwork.com/index.php?home=true www.christianworldviewnetwork.com/index.php?home=true Abortion Map from Fat Knowledge (fatknowledg e.blogspot.c om/2007/06/ world- abort…).

21. Here is a response praising Planned Parenthood [logo pictured here] posted on 06/04/08, 4:07 PM: Great to hear habitat for humanity and Planned parenthood have teamed up. Thank god for Planned Parenthood. God knows we don't need thousands of unwanted babies on this planet... that's why he created the people that created planned parenthood. May abortion always be safe and legal... Thank you God! Even in old testament law, there is nowhere written that says a baby is counted as a person until after it is born. You guys use that "shall not kill" completely out of context. Even Job said he wished he had been aborted. (womb to tomb) And that's the ONLY time besides Corinthians, that you will see abortion mentioned in the bible. AND neither reference says anything about it being wrong. I am a christian, saved by jesus, and I know there is nothing wrong with abortion… Religious people infuriate me. Spiritual people enlighten me, Religious people frighten me. Get back to Jesus and quit being so religious. [Quote appeared on JavaScript.FeedbackReply(‘37333’).] HealthDay reporter Ed Edeison writes: Globally, there were 31 abortions for every 100 live births in 2003, but those statistics varied widely from region to region. For example, there were 105 abortions for every 100 live births in eastern Europe, but in east Asia that rate declined to 51 abortions for every 100 live births. The abortion rate in eastern Europe is dropping rapidly, however, as better contraception becomes available, the researchers said (www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=84507).

22. Alpha Prison Ministries published these statistics: In 1990 the total prison population in the USA was 1.1 million inmates. In 2003 the figure rose to 2.1 million. About 10.4% of all black males between 25 to 29 are in prison. Today more black men are in prison than in college. In 2000 there were 791,600 black men in prison and 603,032 enrolled in college. The Status of the Family

23. Why are these numbers so negative? The key is to look at the family: In 1950, 92% of all white children lived with their biological parents. In 1950, 90% of all black children lived with their biological parents. In 2000, 60% of all white children lived with their biological parents. In 2000, 6% of all black children lived with their biological father and mother! This figure is not a typo … SIX PERCENT! alphapm@juno.com

24. Josh McDowell, in the Dallas Theological Seminary publication Veritas July 2005, said this: After the tragic shootings at Columbine High School in Colorado, the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse wanted to find out how family structure influences a child who is into drugs, alcohol, and violent behavior. What the found is that: A child raised in a single-parent home in which the mother is the head of the home is 30 percent more likely to go into drugs, alcohol, and violence. A child raised in a home with both biological parents who has a good to excellent relationship with his or her father is 94 percent less likely to ever get into drugs, alcohol or violence. In other words, it is possible but totally improbable. It is not just the structure of a home but the relationships within the structure of a home that impact children the most. Josh McDowell

25. This was the title of a January 14, 2008, Newsweek article by Bonnie Eslinger. She writes: I am committed to Jeff for life. I just don’t need a piece of paper and a pretty white dress to prove it. … I am a 42-year-old woman who has lived life mostly on my own terms.... Ten years ago I left a New York career to return to California and pursue a writer’s life. Shortly thereafter I met an intelligent teenager, also determined to live life on her own terms, who is now my fabulous foster daughter. Meeting Jeff – an intelligent, creative, thoughtful man – became the icing on the rich cake… I do not need a piece of paper from the state to strengthen my commitment to Jeff. I do not believe in a religion that says romantic, committed love is moral only if couples pledge joint allegiance to God … I don’t need a ring as a daily reminder to myself or others that heterosexual relationship is entitled to. My gay friends can’t do that. I don’t want to send a message to anyone, including my daughter – who may someday choose a same-sex life partner – that the value of her relationships can be determined by law and the affirmations of others. Say Yes to Love, No to Marriage

26. Gene Edward Veith wrote a very insightful article called Uncommon Bond in “World Magazine,” July 12, 2008. He says: If marriage is being dissolved into its constituent and now unrelated parts, the same could be said of parenting. Single parenting has broken apart the roles of mothers and fathers in a child's life. Mothers must often assume the entire burden of raising a child. Divorced fathers are often kept at a distance from their children, with artificial visitation rights and impersonal child support requirements. In many cases, though, now that marriage has become optional for having children, fathers often play no role whatsoever in a child's life. The dissolution of the family as the basic unit of society means that all of its authority, powers, and responsibilities go, instead, to the government. The state is increasingly assuming the role of the father, functioning as the provider, the protector, and the disciplinarian. The state is also assuming the role of the mother, concerned about our health, nagging us about eating right and avoiding bad habits, and forcing us to be sensitive, well-mannered, and nice. As the Family Falls Apart, the Government Becomes the Parent

27. But the replacement of the family with the state has only just begun. Nearly 20 European nations already have laws—regularly introduced in California— forbidding parents from spanking their children. Recently in Canada a father grounded his 12-year-old daughter for posting inappropriate pictures of herself on the internet, not allowing her to go on a school trip, whereupon the girl sued her father and the court overturned her punishment. The technical term for the state assuming all social authority and control is "totalitarianism.”

28. For the most part, the morality of today is no problem for a secular progressive world. Divorce, remarriage, cohabitation, homosexuality, abortion, the redefinition of the family, and the break up of the family functions into various unrelated parts, are all part of a new evolving or developing world. If you listen to the secularists, these things are not bad, they are just new. They represent progress, not problems. According to them, the only reason we think these things cause problems is because we call what they cause, “problems.” The secularists believe we just need to make adjustments. That’s why we need sex education, AIDs research, new forms of counseling, a secular public school to teach progressive values, and tolerance in all areas of society. But for the secularist, things are getting better. People are becoming more loving, generous, and gracious because they are becoming more tolerant of sin, and accepting of sinners. But they would not call it sin, and they would not call them sinners. They believe sin itself is an archaic concept. People are only benevolent and malevolent. And the only way to define malevolent behavior is that it hurts someone else. It is virtuous to tolerate, if not embrace, everything else. Only if you follow the Bible, is the world getting worse. But if you do, it is. Conclusion

29. The reality is, those who follow biblical moral standards, generally have a better life than those who do not. There is a natural order of things and that order is the way God, Who created them, meant them to be. R.J. Regan, an Equipper with Relational Concepts Inc. reported the following: In fact, in addition to the much higher rate of a failed relationship, co-habitors experienced significantly more difficulty in their marriages with adultery, alcohol, and drugs, than couples who did not cohabitate. Marriages preceded by cohabitation are more prone to problems. [Why Marriage Matters, pages 59-60] In fact, a child left with a mother’s boyfriend experiences substantially higher risk of abuse. Girls are at a higher risk of sexual abuse when the biological dad is not living in the house. In addition, high school drop out rates are twice as high for single parents. [Why Marriage Matters, pages 66-67] The Natural Order of the Way Things Were Created to Be In fact, the woman who has never married is the most likely to experience aggravated assault. By getting married, she will reduce her likelihood of assault by 75%. For men, it is even better. His risk of assault drops by 80%. [Why Marriage Matters, page 64]

30. In fact, cohabitation couples have the highest rates of depression; over 300% higher rate of depression than married. The only group with higher rate of depression was for people who have been divorced twice. Never married people are 60% more likely to be depressed than their married friends. They actually were more than twice as likely to suffer from mental illness. [Why Marriage Matters, pages 66-67] Cohabitation prior to marriage is not simply bad because of the increased problems and risk associated with it, but it is also a strong hindrance to having a successful marriage later on. [Why Marriage Matters, pages 57-60] Monogamous individuals committed to one lifetime partner are the most physically and emotionally satisfied people sexually. [Why Marriage Matters, page 34]

31. In the Olivet Discourse Jesus said: For the coming of the Son of Man will be just like the days of Noah. For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and they did not understand until the flood came and took them all away; so will the coming of the Son of Man be. Matthew 24:37-39 Concerning the days of Noah we read: Then the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. The LORD was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. Genesis 6:5-6 The Olivet Discourse

32. Notice that the people at the End Times will not just be unprepared but, as in the days of Noah: 1.Their wickedness will be great 2.The thoughts of their hearts will be evil 3.They will not understand So the eating, drinking, marrying, and giving in marriage is not normal consumption and normal marriage but wickedness and evil. Today our marrying and giving in marriage is moving strongly toward a global acceptance of homosexual marriage, cohabitation, divorce, and remarriage (51% of women interviewed said they had slept with a married man). All of which God considers wickedness and evil, while the people do not understand that. Today our eating and drinking results in an overweight gluttonous population (64% of Americans are overweight). Success in the market place is dependent upon rewarding greed, and results in living in luxury. All of which God considers wickedness and evil, while the people do not understand that.

33. Remember, while describing Babylon, the antichrist’s global economic empire during the End Times, the Apostle John wrote: The kings of the earth have committed acts of immorality with her, and the merchants of the earth have become rich by the wealth of her sensuality. And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, “Come out of her, my people, that you may not participate in her sins and that you may not receive of her plagues; for her sins have piled up as high as heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities. Pay her back even as she has paid, and give back to her double according to her deeds; in the cup which she has mixed, mix twice as much for her. To the degree that she glorified herself and lived sensuously, to the same degree give her torment and mourning; for she says in her heart, ‘I sit as a queen and I am not a widow, and will never see mourning. Revelation 18:1-7 In the Book of Revelation

34. Paul’s predictions recorded in 2 Timothy 3:1-8 are all true today. He said: But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come. For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents … holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power … men also oppose the truth, men of depraved mind … This has, of course, been true in isolated ways throughout history. The difference is that today: 1. This is becoming true globally, not just in an isolated situation or circumstance. 2.This is becoming true of the average person, not just true of a few people or a corrupt leadership. 3.The holding to a form of godliness, is present in a desire to preserve religious traditions without any need to believe in the truth of those traditions. (In other words, they have denied its power.) The Apostle Paul