items of interest

with contributions from Reuters, Steven L. Phillips, Andrew Young

Instability of marriage affects the family

The National Marriage Project at Rutgers University has brought to light some startling statistics relating to marriage. In 1960, 5.3% of all US babies were born to unwed mothers. In 1997, that number had increased to 32%. The percentage of children living without their fathers increased from 9% in 1960 to 28% in 1998. In 1960, the US divorce rate was 9.2 per thousand married women, and in 1998, that figure had increased to 19.5 per thousand.

These figures help to illustrate the importance of marriage to families and society. "There is no known society that has gotten along without marriage and has done a decent job in rearing and sponsoring the next generation," says Barbara Dafoe Whitehead, who authored the study with David Popenoe.

Reported by Reuters
September 20, 1999

A WAVE OF SPIRITUALITY AT WORK

"In our prospering, high tech, high touch world, business is booming, money is flowing, technology is driving constant whitewater and, at least in American companies, high involvement strategies are in. What is missing from these good times is the development of our soul, our core, our spirit. Spirituality in the workplace seems to be a great fit for our future. It may not provide all of the answers or easy solutions, but it does seem to create a safe harbor for exploration."

Steven L. Phillips, Ph.D.
"Spirituality in the Workplace:
Ten Things the Human Resources Professional Needs to Know"
The 2000 Annual: Volume 2, Consulting
©2000 by Jossey-Bass/Pfeiffer, San Francisco, CA

Women's spiritual calling

Although female religious professionals still face obstacles, particularly in relation to higher-level positions, more and more women are going into the ministry. The number of women pursuing a master of divinity degree in a Christian seminary increased from slightly over 1,000 in 1992 to 8,203 students in 1997.

In Judaism, women rabbis now make up a third of the Conservative movement and about 45% of the Reform movement.

Reported by HoustonChronicle.com
April 29, 1999

How prayer helps children

"Too often, we forget the simple fact that prayer is an extraordinary learning tool for life. Whether it is the presence of mind to recall all that we've studied, the forgiveness from guilt for our failure to study enough, the capacity to make peace amid the conflict or the pride that comes with success; all these and many more burdens become blessings with prayer. Without this tool, our children are limited in their learning as much as if they lacked pencils or books or computers.

"Unlike many educational tools, prayer is a habit that must be learned at home or church. By the demands of constitutional constraint and common sense, it must be nourished in one's own conscience and conviction, and not left to those acting 'in loco parentis.'"

Andrew Young, chairman
Drum Major Institute

Billy Graham visits Harvard

On a recent Sunday morning, twelve hundred students crowded into Harvard Memorial Church to hear the Reverend Dr. Billy Graham deliver his first sermon in the Boston area in seventeen years.

Dr. Graham spoke on "The Real Meaning of the Cross," mentioning that in his evangelical missions through more than a hundred countries, he has found students everywhere who are searching for something they could not identify. "They will never really find an answer," he said, "until they find it in God."

Among Dr. Graham's illustrations was the story of a small boy lost in the heart of an English town, where a policeman tried in vain to help him remember where he lived by suggesting landmarks that might give him his bearings.

In desperation, the policeman looked up at the steeple of a nearby church and pointed to the cross. The boy's tears turned to a smile of relief: "Yes! Take me to the cross. I can find my way home from there."

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The healing touch of Christ

December 20, 1999

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