In Brief... More Grandparents Bringing Up Babies

Sep 23, 2001
2 minutes read time

It was God's intent from the beginning that children should grow up with two parents, male and female, committed to each other in marriage. "So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate," said Jesus Christ (Matthew 19:6).

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"More American children are calling Grandma's house home. In Florida alone, the 2000 Census says, more than 250,000 children live in homes headed by grandparents, up 33 percent from 1990.... The share of children in grandparent-headed homes increased from 6.8 to 7.1 percent" according to the census as reported by the Associated Press. Other states released similar data.

More than half the children living with grandparents also have their mother living with them. This is just one of the demographic trends that shows the decline of the traditional American family.

The Bible reveals that God established marriage at the beginning of human existence when He created Eve out of Adam. "Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh" (Genesis 2:24).

Mankind was God's creation. "So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. Then God blessed them, and God said to them, 'Be fruitful and multiply...'" (Genesis 1:27-28).

Although the Scriptures provide for divorce in certain limited circumstances, the ideal family situation, which God intended for the benefit of all, is the traditional family He created and established thousands of years ago through our first parents, Adam and Eve.

Source: Associated Press.

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Marriage and Family

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Jim Tuck

Jim Tuck

Jim has been in the ministry over 40 years serving fifteen congregations.  He and his wife, Joan, started their service to God's church in Pennsylvania in 1974.  Both are graduates of Ambassador University. Over the years they served other churches in Alabama, Idaho, Oregon, Arizona, California, and currently serve the Phoenix congregations in Arizona, as well as the Hawaii Islands.  He has had the opportunity to speak in a number of congregations in international areas of the world. They have traveled to Zambia and Malawi to conduct leadership seminars  In addition, they enjoy working with the youth of the church and have served in youth camps for many years. 

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. 

Melvin Rhodes

Melvin Rhodes is a member of the United Church of God congregation in Lansing, Michigan.