Wisdom for Your Weekend is your regular installment of what we’ve been reading (and watching) around the web. Presented to you by Chris Pappalardo, with occasional guidance from Pastor J.D., this is our attempt to reflect Proverbs 9:9: “Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be still wiser; teach a righteous man, and he will increase in learning.”
Articles of the Week
Poverty, Dropouts, Pregnancy, Suicide: What the Numbers Say About Fatherless Kids, Claudio Sanchez, NPR. This really shouldn’t be a surprising correlation, but it’s encouraging to see that outlets like NPR (which otherwise want to pretend that gender is immaterial) are stressing the importance of dads. Kids without a father around are four times more likely to be poor and twice as likely to drop out. Young girls without their dads are four times more likely to get pregnant as teens. The stats are as tragic as they are expected.
Why Didn’t the Planned Parenthood Videos Change the Abortion Debate? Joe Carter. Two years ago this week, a group of reporters that no one had ever heard of released a series of undercover interviews in which Planned Parenthood admitted some grisly details about the abortion industry—namely, that they sell the body parts of their aborted babies. The initial attention these videos garnered was mammoth. Many in the pro-life movement thought it would lead to a major shift in the abortion debate. And then, it didn’t. What happened?
The Destructive Misogyny Threatening Our Children, Denny Burk. The sexual revolution promised us more sex, more freedom, and more pleasure. What it has actually delivered, as Burk grimly describes, is a society that treats our young women—as in, girls—as sexual objects. Unsurprisingly, porn use lies at the heart of much of this disgusting shift. Burk’s is a stomach-turning article but a necessary one.
Five Words of Advice for Young Seminarians, Jared Wilson. Having been through seminary some years ago, Wilson’s advice strikes us as obviously wise and fruitful. But we also remember being in seminary, when these five pieces of advice were incredibly easy to ignore. Seminarians: Follow Wilson’s five words, and you’ll make the most of your education; avoid them, and you’re headed for a shipwreck.
Miscarriage Changed Me, Aundi Kolber. With 1 in 10 pregnancies ending in miscarriage, chances are that you or someone close to you has been impacted by the unique difficulties that miscarriage brings. Miscarriage and infertility produce intense emotional pain, but perhaps more challenging is the accompanying feeling of shame. Kolber’s perspective offers a new lens that helps us see through the cloud of shame.
On the Lighter Side
What a Dollar Gets You Around the World, The Infographics Show. In Switzerland, a dollar gets you about 15 percent of a Big Mac (the top bun, I suppose). If you’re looking to travel the world and stretch a buck at the same time, these infographics guys have you covered.
