For the first time since the 1930’s, the overall life expectancy rate in America has declined. Why? Because the suicide rate is increasing all over the country.
There are a multitude of factors that have contributed to this increase. However, all of these factors can be boiled down to one primary cause: despair.
From where is this increasing level of despair coming from? I would argue that one of the primary causes for increasing despair is increasing unbelief in God. The Pew Research Center reports that 23 percent of Americans currently describe themselves as “nones,” or those who consider themselves either atheist, agnostic, or “nothing in particular.” This number has been steadily rising since at least 1972, when “nones” made up seven percent of the population. In just the last 10 years, this number has jumped eight percent, from 15 to 23 percent.
It has been statistically verified that those who attend religious services are far less likely to commit suicide: In a study of 89,000 people “between 1996 and 2010, those who attended any religious service once a week or more were five times less likely to commit suicide.” In another study, “of the 6,999 Catholic women who attended Mass more than once a week, none committed suicide” (emphasis mine).
Without a belief system built on divine revelation, human beings will form their own belief systems around whatever suits them. The secular world is more than happy to fill this demand for what to believe—we are constantly bombarded by the news media and popular entertainment about what we should believe is right and wrong, what is good and evil, what is tolerant and intolerant, what constitutes equality and inequality, etc. If we don’t have religious belief that provides a moral framework grounded in absolute truths, we put ourselves in the risky position of having to ultimately trust in human beings for the ultimate answers. The inevitable culmination of purely human thinking is despair, because we are and never can be ends in ourselves. As discussed previously, we know where despair can eventually lead.
Christ reveals an infinitely better way: divinely revealed truth. In Matthew 16:23, he rebukes human thinking: “You do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.” As Christians, we must do all we can to turn back the tide of unbelief that is steadily rising in America, trusting not in the ways of man, but in the ways of God.
Thank you for your prayers and for your continued support of FRC and the family.
Sincerely,
Dan Hart
Managing Editor for Publications
Family Research Council
FRC Articles
'Sanctuary Cities' Aren't Brave. They're Obstructing Law Enforcement. – Ken Blackwell
When We Choose Love Over Fear, God Stretches Our Hearts – Dan Hart
Trump’s Attorney General Jeff Sessions is bringing the hammer down on leaks – Ken Blackwell
The Decay of Liberty and the Rule of Law in 21st Century America – Peter Johnston
Human Sexuality and the Goodness of Marriage – Clara Ramos and Shania Burch
Iran Heightens Its Crackdown On Christians – Dan Hart
Attention Millennials: True Religious Freedom May Make You Feel Uncomfortable – Mary Beasley
Religious Liberty
Religious Liberty in the Public Square
Religious Liberty Protection Kit for Students and Teachers – First Liberty
Cake Wars And The Coming Conflict Over Religious Liberty – Nathanael Blake, The Federalist
The Threat of Free Speech in the University – Roger Scruton, Ethics & Public Policy Center
Christian wins the right to refuse to photograph homosexual ‘weddings’ – Peter LaBarbera, LifeSiteNews
The Continuing Threat to Religious Liberty – Ryan T. Anderson, National Review
Googling Moral Purity – R.R. Reno, First Things
No One Expects The Google Inquisition, But It’s Coming – Robert Tracinski, The Federalist
Prayer Walks draw protest in Mississippi school district – Ron Maxey, USA Today
Wyoming Judge Appeals To Nation’s Highest Court After Losing Job For Being A Christian – Jonathan Lange, The Federalist
International Religious Freedom
Pray for the persecuted church in Sudan and South Sudan – Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission
Iran Punishes Religious Minorities with Lengthier Sentences – Elisabeth Doherty, 21st Century Wilberforce Initiative
Saving Christians From Genocide – William Doino Jr., First Things
Christian Persecution in India Hits Record High in First Half of 2017 – Anugrah Kumar, The Christian Post
Liu Xiaobo’s Stern Warning – Jianli Yang, National Review
Life
Abortion
American Abortion, American Freedom – Miles Smith, Public Discourse
More than half of women getting abortions also use contraception – Emma Court, New York Post
Why Life Is Winning – Jeanne Mancini, Heritage Foundation
Pro-Life Laws Do Not Lead to Poor Public Health – Michael J. New, National Review
Google And Facebook Co-Sponsoring Protest Of Pro-Life Women’s Health Care Clinic – Peter Hasson, The Daily Caller
"What kind of society do you want to live in?": Inside the country where Down syndrome is disappearing – Julian Quinones and Arijeta Lajka, CBS News
Adoption
The Changing Face of Adoption in the United States – Nicholas Zill, Family Studies
The other Russia story we need to talk about is adoption – Mary Vought, USA Today
Mom Walks in Door with Adopted Baby in Arms. Moment Daughters See Her, They’re Brought to Tears – Carolyn Marie, Liftable
Bioethics
Hospital tries to force baby off life support, parents won’t give up fight – Claire Chretien, LifeSiteNews
Euthanasia Used for 4.5 Percent of Deaths in the Netherlands – Maria Cheng, AP
Stop Assisted-Suicide Opioid Abuse – Wesley J. Smith, First Things
A Tale of Two Sams: You Should Not Actively Euthanize Your Baby – Aaron D. Cobb, Public Discourse
Explainer: American scientists “edit” human embryos – Joe Carter, Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission
Please don’t edit me out – Rebecca Cokley, The Washington Post
FDA warns doctor not to promote ‘three-parent’ fertilization procedure – Lianne Laurence, LifeSiteNews
Obamacare
How Obamacare Is Eroding Private Insurance – Jarrett Stepman, The Daily Signal
Thousands Visit Free Clinics In Barns And Fields: ‘We’re The Middle Class, And We’re Here‘ – Chris Togneri, The Federalist
This is How You Make Health Care Affordable – Jay Bowen, The Stream
Here Are 7 Implications of Ending Obamacare’s Cost-Sharing Reduction Payments – Edmund Haislmaier, The Daily Signal
Family
Economics/Education
When It Comes to Helping People, Facts Don’t Care About Your Intentions – Jacob Roth, The Daily Signal
How Should American Christians Help the Poor at Home? – Rob Schwarzwalder, The Stream
4 Reasons To Pick A College That Doesn’t Want To Destroy Your Principles – Chandler Lasch, The Federalist
Why Men Are the New College Minority – Jon Marcus, The Atlantic
Play Hard. Work Maybe? – Melissa Langsam Braunstein, Family Studies
Marriage
Half of those thinking of divorce reconsider a year later – CBC News
America Abandons Marriage at Its Own Peril – Jerry Newcombe, The Christian Post
Parenting Is Not a “Job,” and Marriage Is Not “Work” – Jonathan Malesic, New Republic
This incredible medical breakthrough could save the lives of millions of preborn babies – Cassy Fiano, Live Action
Faith/Character/Culture
Religion and Politics at the Dinner Table: Challenging the Old Maxim – Christopher W. Love, Public Discourse
Serving God and a woman in need at the Walmart – Patty Knap, Aleteia
Have Smartphones Destroyed a Generation? – Jean M. Twenge, The Atlantic
I Don’t Understand Christians Watching Game of Thrones – Kevin DeYoung, The Gospel Coalition
Does Conscience Point Towards the Existence of God? – Matt Nelson, Word On Fire
Guys Need Bros – Bryan Stoudt, Desiring God
What Having a Ton of Kids Has Taught Me – Jared Zimmerer, Word On Fire
On Fields of Praise – Robert Royal, The Catholic Thing
The Great Wall of Cotton: Why We Hit Snooze on God – Greg Morse, Desiring God
Don’t Let Politics Turn America Into Another Charlottesville – David Harsanyi, The Federalist
Human Sexuality
Study finds more Americans are approving of polygamy – Catholic News Agency
Talking about sex with your kids: 5 things I’m learning – John Powell, Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission
Examining the History of Sexual Exploitation and the Fight to Eradicate It – Madeleine Ayers, National Center on Sexual Exploitation
‘Gender Expert’: Boy Won’t Play With Trucks. Let’s Make Him A Girl. – Hank Berrien, The Daily Wire
This debate is about gender dysphoria, not transgender military service – Jamie Shupe, MercatorNet
Why Are Lesbian Teens Having Two To Seven Times As Many Babies As Their Heterosexual Peers? – Glenn T. Stanton, The Federalist
Human Trafficking
Senators: Alter Internet laws to hold Backpage liable for sex trafficking – Aamer Madhani, USA Today
At Las Vegas’s Mayweather-McGregor Fight, Human Trafficking May Happen Right In Front Of You – Vinciane Ngomsi, The Federalist
Pornography
Why Both Sides of the Aisle Can Agree that Pornography is a Public Health Crisis – Dawn Hawkins, Huffington Post