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Issues in Perspective has lamented family breakdown, social disintegration and the decline of American civilization for several years now.  The evidence for all these propositions seems overwhelming.  However, a recent study gives a small ray of hope.  In early March, the Centers for Disease Control revealed that American teens and 20-somethings are waiting longer to have sex.  In 2002, the study reported that 22% of Americans ages 15 to 24 were still virgins.  By 2008, that number was up to 28%.  In addition to these encouraging statistics, a recent book by two sociologists, Mark Regnerus and Jeremy Uecker (Premarital Sex in America), suggests that among contemporary young adults, there is a significant correlation between sexual restraint and emotional well-being, between monogamy and happiness?and between promiscuity and depression. This correlation is much stronger among women than men and, as columnist Ross Douthat suggests, ?Female emotional well-being seems to be tightly bound to sexual stability?which may help explain why overall female happiness has actually drifted downward since the sexual revolution.?  All of this also challenges the worldview of Planned Parenthood, which takes teenage sexual activity for granted and sees, as the primary concern, only that the sex be clinically ?safe.?

God has established the ?lines on the tennis court? of life.  If we choose to step over those, there are consequences.  But if the culture, including unbelievers, choose to follow His guidelines (even if unbeknownst to them) there will be common grace blessing.  Perhaps there is now a glimmering hope that the culture is finally coming to its senses!

See Douthat?s essay in the New York Times (6 March 2011).