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The Christian Family In the Beginning Therefore
shall a man leave his father and his mother,
Among God’s first commands to his human creation was the establishment .of the family relationship, first between husband and wife and later with the children they would beget. These commands have been severely tested in our day with divorce and non-formalized sexual relationships replacing the biblical marriage contracts. With the increase of both mates working outside the home has come a decrease in the cohesion of traditional family values. Children are often assigned to surrogates or, worse yet, left unattended. The result has been a breakdown of respect for parental authority and a growth of crime and rebellious behavior. The “Christian Family” is fast becoming an anachronism. This issue of The Herald seeks to investigate the Scriptural principles that should govern each member of the Christian family. Throughout history the family hierarchy emphasized a developing love that would make the couple “one flesh.” Articles in the first half of this issue explore the roles and responsibilities of husband, wife, and adult care-giver for senior and handicapped members of the family unit. The verse-by-verse study entitled “The Doctrine of Submission” discusses the precepts governing a Christian’s submission to others and the limitations of such deference. The articles in the last half of this issue deal with the roles and responsibilities of parents, children, and teenagers. The family relationship was an integral part of Jewish law and has historically been strongly advocated by the Christian community. It was a prime responsibility of parents to not only give proper guidance to children and prepare them for adult life, but to pass their religious heritage to them as well. The concluding article, “One Flesh, Two Hearts,” considers the case of marriage between unequally yoked spouses where one is a believer and the other is not. It is the sincere desire of the editors that the biblical admonitions herein may be of assistance to all sincere Christians to strengthen their family bonds and restore the values inculcated in the holy word in their daily lives. |