An endangered species

The way things are going, it seems that the family is fast becoming an endangered species.

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Powerful forces are undermining it. Many movies, books, and news reports no longer portray the family as a sanctuary of love and belonging, but as an oppressive institution that breeds harm and unhappiness. Time Magazine once published an essay that described the family as a nest of pathology, a cradle of gruesome violence, and the source of all discontent.These bleak views extend even to the values that sustain family life, especially love. For instance, another article in Time Magazine reduced love to a mere chemical combination of hormones and neurotransmitters in the brain. The implication is clear. There is nothing sacred or mysterious about love. We romanticize it only because we are ignorant of the biological processes involved.

THROUGH UNTRUE

FR. ROLANDO Y. DELA ROSA, O.P.

Fidelity fares no better. Some anthropologists insist that infidelity is embedded in our genes, arguing that evolution proves monogamy to be the exception rather than the rule. Popular culture reinforces this belief, as movie and television personalities openly flaunt their serial adultery, presenting unfaithfulness as normal, even inevitable. No wonder, divorce has become prevalent today.