Marriage, Divorce, and the Church: What do the stats say, and can marriage be happy? | The Exchange | A Blog by Ed Stetzer

Love is in the air, and that means church signs are awkwardly communicating the love of Jesus, teenage boys are cowering before their girlfriends' fathers, and married couples are waiting two hours for mediocre Italian food while their kids terrorize their babysitters.

However, for some, Valentine's Day isn't all chocolates and roses. It is a difficult day for some as it reminds them of a recent breakup or difficult divorce.

When it comes to marriage and divorce, people are drawn to shocking statistics.

But what do the stats really say? Do Christians divorce as often as the rest of the world or even more? Is happy marriage even possible? How can anybody actually be happy in marriage?

MORE: Marriage, Divorce, and the Church: What do the stats say, and can marriage be happy? | The Exchange | A Blog by Ed Stetzer

Mum's the Word on Divorce

If I asked you to name the “hot button” social issues of concern to Christians, you’d probably cite abortion and gay marriage right away. Of course, the coarse and hyper-sexualized nature of popular culture might also come to mind.
But what probably wouldn’t come to mind is the high incidence of divorce. Given the clear biblical teaching on the subject and its impact on families and children, that is, to put it mildly, more than a little odd.
Actually, as one Christian leader rightly puts it, our lack of attention to the subject is a “scandal.”
MORE: Mum's the Word on Divorce

Sadly…The Cohabitation Revolution

(Rick Lowry)
The great divorce revolution of the 1960s and 1970s has faded. The great cohabitation revolution has begun.

The divorce rate for married couples with children is almost back to the levels of the early 1960s, before the run-up that crested in the early 1980s. Considering the decades of social turbulence buffeting the institution of marriage between then and now, this is a notable restoration.
But it only means that marriage is unraveling in a different way. According to a new study by the Institute for American Values and the National Marriage Project at the University of Virginia, cohabitation has increased 14-fold since 1970. About 24 percent of children are born to cohabiting couples, more than are born to single mothers, while another 20 percent experience a cohabiting household at some time in their childhood.
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Facebook-Divorce Stats

Facebook-Divorce Stats: Couples Be Wise (Baptist Press)

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP)--"Surveys that show Facebook being cited more and more in divorce cases should make spouses think twice before "friending" someone of the opposite sex, experts say.
A 2010 survey by the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers showed that 81 percent of "the nation's top divorce attorneys" reported an increase in social networking websites being used as evidence in divorce cases. Facebook is the leader, being cited in 66 percent of cases that involve online evidence...."

The Truth About Christian Divorce Rate

The Christian Divorce Rate Myth (Baptist Press)

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (BP)--""Christians divorce at roughly the same rate as the world!" It's one of the most quoted stats by Christian leaders today. And it's perhaps one of the most inaccurate. Based on the best data available, the divorce rate among Christians is significantly lower than the general population.
Here's the truth....Many people who seriously practice a traditional religious faith -- be it Christian or other -- have a divorce rate markedly lower than the general population. ....."

What Brain Scans Tell us about Marriage (NY Times). "THE sudden breakup of Al and Tipper Gore’s seemingly idyllic marriage was the latest and among the sharpest reminders that the only two people who know what’s going on in a marriage are the two people who are in it..."