Post by OverseerCWFJ on Sept 13, 2004 15:04:55 GMT -5
Study finds slightly better news on divorces in Christian community
Two years ago the Barna Research Group shocked the Christian community with a study suggesting that born again Christians had a slightly higher divorce rate than the general population. A new study by the organization suggests that the percentages have now evened out, but this is only a small comfort, according to George Barna, head of the organization that conducted the study.
Noting that 90 percent of divorces involving born again Christians happened after the partners became Christians, Barna called it “especially unsettling” that Christian faith didn’t save those marriages.
The study also found that Americans are increasingly likely to engage in cohabitation before marriage, and that those who do have a greater risk of experiencing at least one divorce during their lifetime. Born again Christians were less likely to cohabit before marriage, but just as likely to get divorced.
Cohabitation is increasingly common, and one out of three adults said they lived with someone of the opposite gender (other than relatives) outside of marriage. Men (39 percent) are more likely to have cohabited than women (28 percent). Younger Americans are much more likely to cohabit. Nearly half (44 percent) of the nation’s adults under age 35 said they had cohabited, compared to 33 percent of those ages 35 to 49, 24 percent of those in their 50s and 60s, and just 1 percent of those age 70 or older.
Faith seemed to play a major role in determining whether a person would cohabit before marriage. Among born again Christians, just 25 percent said they had cohabited; among Christians whose beliefs do not classify them as born again, 37 percent had cohabited. Atheists were the most likely to cohabit, at 51 percent, and Catholics (36 percent) were more likely to cohabit than Protestants (30 percent).
Marriage continues to be the social norm, and more than nine out of 10 Americans eventually get married. Barna’s polling found that while 58 percent of adults under age 35 are single, only 14 percent of adults age 35 to 49 are still single, and only 6 percent of those beyond 50 have never married.
But marriage is not as stable an institution as it may once have been. One-third of those who have been married have experienced at least one divorce. Born again Christians were just as likely to get divorced as their non-born again peers. Among born again Christians, 33 percent who had been married have been divorced at least once, only one percent less than non-born again adults - a margin of difference that it statistically insignificant.
College graduates are slightly less likely to be divorced, as are people in the northeast. Differences among racial groups were miniscule.
Barna knows that his findings on divorce among Christians are controversial, but insists that the research speaks for itself. “The adults analyzed in the born again category were not those who claimed to be born again, but were individuals who stated a personal commitment to Christ, having confessed their sins, embracing Christ as their savior, and believing that they have received eternal salvation because of their faith in Christ alone,” he explained. “More than 90 percent of the born again adults who have been divorced experienced that divorce after they accepted Christ, not before. It is unfortunate that so many people, regardless of their faith, experience a divorce, but especially unsettling to find that the faith commitment of so many born again individuals has not enabled them to strengthen and save their marriages.”<br>
— E.P. News
Two years ago the Barna Research Group shocked the Christian community with a study suggesting that born again Christians had a slightly higher divorce rate than the general population. A new study by the organization suggests that the percentages have now evened out, but this is only a small comfort, according to George Barna, head of the organization that conducted the study.
Noting that 90 percent of divorces involving born again Christians happened after the partners became Christians, Barna called it “especially unsettling” that Christian faith didn’t save those marriages.
The study also found that Americans are increasingly likely to engage in cohabitation before marriage, and that those who do have a greater risk of experiencing at least one divorce during their lifetime. Born again Christians were less likely to cohabit before marriage, but just as likely to get divorced.
Cohabitation is increasingly common, and one out of three adults said they lived with someone of the opposite gender (other than relatives) outside of marriage. Men (39 percent) are more likely to have cohabited than women (28 percent). Younger Americans are much more likely to cohabit. Nearly half (44 percent) of the nation’s adults under age 35 said they had cohabited, compared to 33 percent of those ages 35 to 49, 24 percent of those in their 50s and 60s, and just 1 percent of those age 70 or older.
Faith seemed to play a major role in determining whether a person would cohabit before marriage. Among born again Christians, just 25 percent said they had cohabited; among Christians whose beliefs do not classify them as born again, 37 percent had cohabited. Atheists were the most likely to cohabit, at 51 percent, and Catholics (36 percent) were more likely to cohabit than Protestants (30 percent).
Marriage continues to be the social norm, and more than nine out of 10 Americans eventually get married. Barna’s polling found that while 58 percent of adults under age 35 are single, only 14 percent of adults age 35 to 49 are still single, and only 6 percent of those beyond 50 have never married.
But marriage is not as stable an institution as it may once have been. One-third of those who have been married have experienced at least one divorce. Born again Christians were just as likely to get divorced as their non-born again peers. Among born again Christians, 33 percent who had been married have been divorced at least once, only one percent less than non-born again adults - a margin of difference that it statistically insignificant.
College graduates are slightly less likely to be divorced, as are people in the northeast. Differences among racial groups were miniscule.
Barna knows that his findings on divorce among Christians are controversial, but insists that the research speaks for itself. “The adults analyzed in the born again category were not those who claimed to be born again, but were individuals who stated a personal commitment to Christ, having confessed their sins, embracing Christ as their savior, and believing that they have received eternal salvation because of their faith in Christ alone,” he explained. “More than 90 percent of the born again adults who have been divorced experienced that divorce after they accepted Christ, not before. It is unfortunate that so many people, regardless of their faith, experience a divorce, but especially unsettling to find that the faith commitment of so many born again individuals has not enabled them to strengthen and save their marriages.”<br>
— E.P. News
