Teen violence reveals need for good parenting
Considering
the causes of callous homes
and "soul-less youngsters"
DICK BRUSCO PHOTO COURTESY OF
EP NEWS
Columbine students
mourn the loss of their classmates.
Images of teenagers wreaking havoc among their peers have horrified North Americans in recent weeks. This isn’t just video-game violence; the real death toll is mounting. Fifteen dead in Colorado. One dead in Taber, Alberta. Threats of copycat killings all over the continent. Teenage violence is nothing new, but there’s something particularly frightening about what’s happening now. The perpetrators are chillingly callous; their ability to destroy is immense.
Christian young people are caught up in this vortex of violence. Taber victim Jason Lang loved Jesus and went on a mission trip to Mexico last summer. Members of a church youth group in Victoria, B.C., were beaten by a pack of teenagers when they came to the aid of a victim of bullying (CW, May12/98). And Cassie Bernall, who died in the Colorado shootings, is being heralded as a Christian martyr. Confronted by a gunman at Columbine High School, the 17-year-old paused for a long time before answering his pointed question–"Do you believe in God?"–with an unequivocal "Yes, I believe in God."
| Cassie’s
story is touching many, in part because her
vibrant personal faith was scarcely two yearsold.
Her parents report that as a young teen their
child began changing for the worse. She turned
sullen and devious and developed an interest in
witchcraft, drugs and alcohol. At that point her
parents decided that the only way to stop their
daughter from making bad decisions was to make
good ones for her and take draconian measures.
They changed her school, regularly searched her
room and backpacks, and totally cut her off from
the people she’d been hanging out
with–including her best friend. "It’s the hardest thing a parent will ever have to do, to put your foot down and say, ‘it stops here,’" says Brad Bernall. |
|
Some activities were allowed. One weekend a gloomy, head-down Cassie dragged herself off to a church youth retreat, only to return home bright-eyed and bouncy. Her mother, Misty, describes the transformation. "She looked me in the eye and she said, ‘Mom, I’ve changed. I’ve totally changed. I know you’re not going to believe it, but I’ll prove it to you.’" Cassie was true to her word.
Stark contrast
The very day of the Columbine shootings a group of teenagers in Victoria, B.C., were in court to explain their part in the November 1997 beating death of a fellow student, Reena Virk. National Post columnist Christie Blatchford’s disturbing article, "The dark side of our exotic youth," (Apr21/99), describes the amoral apathy of these "soul-less youngsters." An incident involving the 16-year-old girlfriend of the accused is particularly telling. "[She] came to court yesterday with a woman from victim services; her mom had testified last week so, she said, she wouldn’t have to postpone a planned holiday to Mexico."
The stark contrast between self-absorbed parents and those who care enough to confront is instructive. While many factors contribute to teen violence and callous behavior, common sense should be enough to tell us that the most effective way to protect young people from unhealthy or dangerous behaviors is for parents to be involved in their lives–preferably with consistency from infancy onwards. Scientific evidence also clearly supports the idea that feeling loved, wanted and cared about at home–which doesn’t happen without a significant investment of the parents’ time–is important to adolescent health ("Protecting adolescents from harm," JAMA, Sep10/97).
This doesn’t mean that children from good homes won’t go astray, or that those from broken situations can’t turn out well. But we must not minimize the vital role parents serve in developing the character of their children. It is not enough to give adolescents their freedom; our job is to equip them properly for independent living.
Doug Koop
Editor
Pro-life supporters from across the country are gathering May 13-14 in Ottawa to lament 30 years of legal abortion in Canada and to remember the two million unborn Canadians whose lives were prematurely ended. Planned activities include prayer services and rallies. A mass march will begin at the Supreme Court of Canada, wending its way through the downtown area to finish with a program at the Peace Tower on Parliament Hill.
It was on May 14, 1969, that an omnibus bill decriminalizing abortion was introduced and passed by the Liberal government, a day pro-life activists have dubbed "Canada’s Day of Infamy." Developments in public policy and social practice since then have given Canadians opposed to abortion very little to cheer about.
But countless thousands remain committed to the cause and continue to serve a vital role as a public conscience. Motivated by both principle and compassion, their work as activists and educators is a valiant effort to hold our society accountable to life-affirming values. Behind the scenes, the tireless, anonymous service of many who compassionately address the individual needs of women with unwanted pregnancies is an enduring picture of love in action.
Thirty years of legal abortions gives cause to remember. Christians are properly grateful for all who offer their energy to create a society that supports life, enables children to be raised with dignity and respects human life at every stage of its development.
Doug Koop
Editor
