CULTURE DOESN'T ENCOURAGE MARRIAGE PROMISES

Despite national pushes by churches and other family-oriented groups, nearly half of all marriages still end in divorce. Over the last century, there has been a vast change in the ideal of a long-lasting marriage. America's divorce rate tripled between 1960 and 1980.

Ironically, the national rate is slightly higher in states considered the Bible Belt.

Nationally, there were about 4.2 divorces for every 1,000 people in 1998. But the rate was higher in Tennessee, Arkansas, Kentucky, Kansas, Alabama, Oklahoma, Illinois and Iowa. Missouri ranked 17th in the most divorces certainly not a source of pride for the Show Me State.

Nevada was the state with the highest divorce rate. New York state had the lowest.

The high divorce rate is not all that surprising in a culture that doesn't force people to keep their promises, observes one local pastor. In this time of easy-come, easy-go, marriage may simply be one more casualty.

But what is the fallout? Today's young people may be hurt more by this trend than anyone else. It may be no accident that the high divorce rate has accompanied growing juvenile crime rates and falling test scores in school.

Although today's fast-paced culture is contributing to marriage failures, real help for married couples must come from the trenches. Local communities and churches must work to help couples, one marriage at a time.

One program that may be helping is Marriage Savers. More than 110 cities, including Cape Girardeau, have joined this program which offers premarital counseling and marriage preparation. The premise of the program is that churches have neglected married couples for too long. While they have upheld the sanctity of marriage, many churches have not wanted to estrange members who do divorce.

In Cape Girardeau, the program has support from more than two-thirds of the city's churches. You can learn more about the national program on the Internet at www.marriagesavers.com. The program boasts of being able to save between 80 to 90 percent of the most troubled marriages.

In the last century, America's divorce rates increased substantially. As the nation moves to the next century, it is time for society to decide if the nation can afford for divorce rates to move even higher.