Whatever happened to shame?

Last week Tom Brady's ex girlfriend Bridget Moynahan announced that she was pregnant. Brady acknowledged that he was indeed the father, thanked everyone for their support and expressed his excitement. But nowhere did he mention exactly how he was going to be involved with the baby and nobody expressed any sense of moral opposition towards his behavior. It was as if getting his ex girlfriend pregnant was no big deal.

I find this to be very troubling. Study after study find that children are better off being raised in a two parent home. Children raised by single parents are more likely to struggle in school, have a higher propensity towards drug and alcohol abuse and generally are worse off financially than those children raised by married parents. I realize even by stating these facts that some people will be offended. But with the data so clear, why do we as a culture not seem to care if another kid is born out of wedlock?

Have we really lost our way in terms of right and wrong? And its not just this instance but even when I look at my teenage nephews who have no sense of shame about taking drugs or fooling around with girls. When I speak with them about these issues it's like they simply don't care that I don't approve. The same could be said for the rising number of couples that live together before marriage. It's all but common place now even within the church. It's the odd couple that chooses to try and stay pure before getting married.

I try not to be judgemental in these cases because I have my own sin in my life. But I also understand that when I do sin, I know that I am wrong and seek forgiveness and try to make things right. Most people in our culture just keep on sinning either for lack of knowledge or because they just don't care. Their conscience has become so dulled by the relativism that many people truly think there is nothing wrong with their behavior.

Say what you want about religious fundamentalism but at the very least, it helped maintain some sense of decency in our culture. Even the people who didn't agree with the black and white rules at least kept their behavior in check because they thought somebody might judge or shame them. Unfortunately there was such little grace involved that people got sick of being told what to do and they grew up vowing not to tell others what to do. As a result, today there are no such checks against immoral behavior. In fact, it is often celebrated and encouraged.

So what is the right answer to stopping to the moral erosion in our culture? I don't know and that's what frustrates me the most.