World News and Trends: The distributing fruits of premarital sex
Premarital sex is increasingly becoming a real problem in Britain. One very troubling manifestation is the fact that 4 in 10 babies are now born to unmarried parents.
Premarital sex is increasingly becoming a real problem in Britain. One very troubling manifestation is the fact that 4 in 10 babies are now born to unmarried parents. The Daily Mail's social affairs correspondent Steve Doughty wrote: "The number of children born to unmarried mothers has risen by a third in 10 years . . . More than 42 of every 100 babies were born outside of marriage last year . . . In the early 1970s, it was less than 10 per cent" (May 13).
Although not exclusively a teenage problem, the growth in abortions is another disturbing aspect of premarital sex. A recent feature article reported that "a dramatic rise in repeat abortions has reinforced fears that women are increasingly having terminations for lifestyle reasons. One in three abortions is now carried out on women who have had at least one before."
Abortion is increasingly called "the new birth control." This year the number will most probably reach a record high in England and Wales.
Sexually transmitted diseases are out of control among teenagers, with enormous increases reported in various types. Little that really works is being done to discourage these society-destroying trends. In fact, the reverse is true in some quarters.
According to Daily Mail media editor Matt Born: "Television viewers face a dramatic rise in sex, swearing and violence as restrictions on what can now be shown were swept away yesterday. The broadcasting regulator OFCOM signaled the dawn of a new permissive era by stating 'freedom of expression' was the principle at the heart of its new broadcasting code . . . Broadcasters will be able to show much more graphic sex and violence—as long as there's sufficient warning for viewers" (May 26).
The standards are gradually falling. So it is no surprise that a report from the Royal College of Nursing stated that "increasing numbers of teenagers are indulging in pre-marital sex." Free access to contraception (without the knowledge of parents) is a contributing factor. Also young people feel pressured into having sex by their peer groups and by the negative influences of the media as a whole.
The core of the difficulty is that true biblical standards are no longer being taught with conviction either in schools or at home. The resultant fruits are inevitable. Noted columnist Melanie Phillips remarked: "There is another type of family where all standards or restraint and civilised behaviour have broken down: a pattern of recklessness which is increasingly being repeated throughout Britain" (May 25).
If you would like to understand the background to some of these societal problems and how to better cope with them, please request our free booklets Making Life Work and The Ten Commandments. (Source: Daily Mail [London].)
An Article from:
Good News Magazine: July - August 2005
Course Content
Jerold Aust
Jerold Aust has served in the ministry for 52 years, as a public speaker for 58 years, a published writer for 38 years, and is employed by UCG’s Media and Communications Services. He is a Senior Writer, interviewer, and editor for Beyond Today Magazine and has taught Speech Communication for UCG’s ministerial online program and the Book of Revelation for ABC.
Jerold holds a BA in theology from Ambassador College, Pasadena (1968), an MA in Communication from California State University, Fullerton (1995), a distance-learning Ph.D (2006), and a Famous Writers School diploma in non-fiction writing (1973). Additionally, he studied post-grad communication at University of Southern California (1995), radio, TV, voice-overs, and Public Relations at Fullerton College (1995-1996), and graduate communication at Wichita State University (1978). Jerold has taught communication at the University of South Alabama (7 years) and ABC (17 years). His published works include, Ronald Reagan’s Rhetoric: Metaphor as Persuasion and EZSpeakers: Public Speaking Made Easy in 7 Steps. Jerold's overarching goal is to share with humankind its incredible destiny!
John Ross Schroeder
John died on March 8, 2014, in Oxford, England, four days after suffering cardiac arrest while returning home from a press event in London. John was 77 and still going strong.
Some of John's work for The Good News appeared under his byline, but much didn't. He wrote more than a thousand articles over the years, but also wrote the Questions and Answers section of the magazine, compiled our Letters From Our Readers, and wrote many of the items in the Current Events and Trends section. He also contributed greatly to a number of our study guides and Bible Study Course lessons. His writing has touched the lives of literally millions of people over the years.
John traveled widely over the years as an accredited journalist, especially in Europe. His knowledge of European and Middle East history added a great deal to his articles on history and Bible prophecy.
In his later years he also pastored congregations in Northern Ireland and East Sussex, and that experience added another dimension to his writing. He and his wife Jan were an effective team in our British Isles office near their home.
John was a humble servant who dedicated his life to sharing the gospel—the good news—of Jesus Christ and the Kingdom of God to all the world, and his work was known to readers in nearly every country of the world.
