by Leo Rogol (1969)<\/p>\n
What I saw was not what one reads about children in storybooks and poems: \u00a0It was not the beauty of childish innocence; the simple trusting faith in something big, wide, and wonderful; a child roaming the fields with his beloved dog, searching out the marvelous mysteries and wonders of nature. Though I thank my Lord that I can still see these, I am saddened by what I see more and more each day. \u00a0But these children I am telling about, I actually saw myself.<\/p>\n
I saw a girl<\/strong>, about the age of eleven, leaving home dressed as if she were training in the art of prostitution. \u00a0Cheap, vulgar, and sexy standards were permitted by her mother and father. \u00a0Her clothing was a shame to the very name of “Modesty.” Yes, I see hundreds of such going to school, to parties, and elsewhere, destroying the God-given beauty of childhood with cheap and vulgar attire and make-up. \u00a0I saw an older girl who was the victim of her parents’ permissive upbringing, who was forever ruined by the vicious act of rape, a shattered mind and body through drug addiction, and many other abuses.<\/p>\n I saw a boy<\/strong>, about fourteen, chased by the police because he stole several cartons of cigarettes from a neighborhood grocery. \u00a0I saw him after he was caught and checked over — defiant, foul-mouthed, with only ugly contempt for the law officers who apprehended him. \u00a0I also saw a boy, about nine, with a switchblade knife and boasting of his skill in its use.<\/p>\n I saw so many young boys and girls living in a lewd manner in a “hippie colony” like a pack of wild animals, stripped of pride and decency, honor and integrity.<\/p>\n I saw a child<\/strong>, of those professing to be Christians roaming the streets while their parents were on the way to services of the church. \u00a0If these children are not taught to obey God and parental authority which demands they should be brought up “in the nurture and admonition of the Lord” (Ephesians 6:4), then there is not much authority for which they are taught to show respect. \u00a0If these children are not taught to show respect for God’s authority, which is the highest of all, how can they be expected to respect civil authority (Romans 13:1), or even parental authority (Ephesians 6:1)?<\/p>\n This is not the end of all the tragedy that I saw among these children. \u00a0This was but the beginning. The suffering and remorse — the lives ruined cannot all be told on this page.<\/p>\n But then I saw a mother<\/strong>, who feared the lack of respect for law and order in our society. \u00a0I saw a father<\/strong>, who complained that our government failed to take corrective measures to curb violence, rioting, looting, and bloodshed that has swept as a devouring fire across the nation. \u00a0Yes, I saw parents<\/strong>\u00a0who were responsible for allowing their children to develop into law-breakers, allowing them to show disrespect for law and order, allowing their children (even encouraging them) to engage in sinful, immoral acts,\u00a0then blaming our government for their own failures at home! \u00a0<\/i>I see and hear church members<\/strong> complaining about church problems, yet allowing their children to develop into undesirable church members. \u00a0What better kind of church do we expect than that made up of people corrupted by the pollution of the world?<\/p>\n What I saw can be multiplied by the thousands: What I saw has been seen by thousands of others. When these sad cases are multiplied by so many thousands, is it any wonder that the whole nation becomes influenced? \u00a0the basic unit of our society is the home. \u00a0Destroy moral and spiritual standards in the home and this evil reflects in the whole society. Multiply this type of home environment by the thousands and you have the answer to all the lawlessness and unrest in our nation. \u00a0No government of the people<\/strong>\u00a0can accomplish any more for the people<\/strong>\u00a0than the basic units of its society, the homes, are willing to accomplish. \u00a0There is always room for improvements in our government, as there is in any area of our lives, but the government cannot substitute for the home. \u00a0No matter how good a government we have, it can never amend the breakdown of the moral and spiritual standards of the home.<\/p>\n And this same principle is true in the church. \u00a0How weak or strong is the church depends on the weakness or strengths of the individual members who make up the church. \u00a0If we complain about the ills of the church, it is, in reality, the cry of a guilty conscience of those who fail to live up to the demands of the gospel, by which and upon which each Christian stands, and by which and upon which the church stands.<\/p>\n Yes, we want to see a healthy society and a strong church. \u00a0But this will be only when the little girl is taught by her parents to behave as a little girl should; when that boy who was caught stealing is taught, at home, true principles of honesty and virtue; when boys and girls all over the land will have the security of good, sound and proper parental discipline at home. The home, then, is the first place to look for the problems which cause the effects of lawlessness. \u00a0This is not a political issue to be tossed about by candidates. \u00a0It is an issue that must be faced at home. \u00a0The problems of the nation are the problems of the home. \u00a0What kind of children are seen in your home?<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" by Leo Rogol (1969) What I saw was not what one reads about children in storybooks and poems: \u00a0It was not the beauty of childish innocence; the simple trusting faith in something big, wide, and wonderful; a child roaming the fields with his beloved dog, searching out the marvelous mysteries and wonders of nature. Though…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1033,1031,1028,1032,1034],"tags":[78,665,29,107],"class_list":["post-57479","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-adolescence","category-childhood","category-parenting","category-preteen","category-teenager","tag-authority","tag-child-rearing","tag-parenting","tag-raising-children"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":50338,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/how-do-you-handle-in-laws-who-are-evil-toward-your-child\/","url_meta":{"origin":57479,"position":0},"title":"How do you handle in-laws who are evil toward your child?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"April 3, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: What do you do in a situation when your in-laws are evil toward your child because they don't like you? They take it out on her -- nice one minute and evil demonic the next -- even using profanity and bodily harm against her, and all you say is\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":27260,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/how-can-you-live-with-yourself\/","url_meta":{"origin":57479,"position":1},"title":"How can you live with yourself?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"April 17, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I came across your site on accident, and to be honest, I am absolutely appalled. I am currently a third-year student, working towards my B.A. in Social Work, and I am astounded at your ignorance. I work with abused children every day, and to see you condoning behavior that\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":25388,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/will-parents-be-held-accountable-for-the-video-games-their-children-play\/","url_meta":{"origin":57479,"position":2},"title":"Will parents be held accountable for the video games their children play?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"January 1, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Will parents be held accountable for the video games their children play? What if one is a step-parent? Answer: Whether a child genetically comes from you or not, the fact that you have taken on the role of a parent means you are responsible for the raising of the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":17574,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/i-think-spanking-leads-to-more-aggression\/","url_meta":{"origin":57479,"position":3},"title":"I think spanking leads to more aggression","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"January 23, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I think spanking a 14-year-old young man is unreasonable and will lead to more aggression.\u00a0 My parents spanked me with the belt and left bruises.\u00a0 It left scars on my soul and was not focused on loving correction. I am very conservative in my theology and think this Scripture\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":39710,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/since-my-divorce-my-children-no-longer-believe-in-god-what-can-i-do\/","url_meta":{"origin":57479,"position":4},"title":"Since my divorce, my children no longer believe in God. What can I do?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"July 13, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Hello, Several years ago my wife became involved in a charismatic group and my marriage fell apart. As I dealt with this situation over the years, I see the effects on my children from what has happened. They were preteens and teenagers when the divorce happened. Throughout all of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":56940,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/his-parents-were-too-strict\/","url_meta":{"origin":57479,"position":5},"title":"His Parents Were Too Strict","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"December 16, 2006","format":false,"excerpt":"by Boyd Sellers Have you ever heard that statement? You'll see some scraggly kid who cares about nothing and nobody, who has long ago left the Lord (though he may have been faithfully \"going to church\"), and who has literally broken his parents' hearts. You ask a friend, \"What happened\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Parenting"","block_context":{"text":"Parenting","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/parenting\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57479","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=57479"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57479\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=57479"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=57479"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=57479"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}