More Babies

We serve a God who is dedicated to order - creation operates according to certain laws, and His principles are true and reliable. If we violate the divine order of God, we will face the consequences. So, we have to discern the will of the Lord and do it. The apostle Paul was so confident in his obedience to God that he wrote these words in 1st Corinthians chapter 11:
1 Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ.
2 Now I praise you, brethren, that you remember me in all things and keep the traditions just as I delivered them to you.
3 But I want you to know that the head of every man is Christ, the head of woman is man, and the head of Christ is God.

In my conversation with Delano Squires of the Heritage Foundation and The Blaze at the NRB Convention this year, we discussed the violation of God's divine order with regard to the family - when you turn aside from the sexual ethic we find in Scripture, you find couples who meet, move in together, and even have a child together - all outside of the bonds of marriage.  This dilutes the strength of the family in our culture.

Now, a piece from The Washington Stand that was also published at The Christian Post explored a warped view of fatherhood, combined with a commitment to natalism, which is a devotion to having more babies. But, while we support life and a culture of life, we have to be careful that the children who are conceived are raised in the right environment, according to the principles of Scripture. 

The writer, Dan Hart of Family Research Council, was responding to a piece at the Wall Street Journal about the fatherhood practices of the richest man in the world, Elon Musk.  Certainly, I appreciate his attempts to cut the size of government and his staunch opposition to the transgender agenda.  But, he possess a flawed view of parenthood, I believe. 

Hart writes:

Musk, who is currently unmarried, has fathered at least 14 children by four different women, some through in vitro fertilization, with the “true number [likely] much higher than publicly known.”

What’s more, according to an in-depth report from The Wall Street Journal published last week, Musk appears to be consumed by the idea that in order to counteract the world’s decreasing birthrates, humans must increase in population so that they can inhabit other planets in order to “ensur[e] the long-term survival of humanity and all life as we know it.” Musk has therefore taken it upon himself to father as many children as possible with high intelligence, even arguing that babies should be born via caesarean section to allow for larger brains.

Hart goes on to say:

...we must address the first fundamental error that Musk is making in his quest to repopulate Earth in his image. It is evident that Musk believes that the propagation of children is primarily a means to an end, that children of advanced intelligence must be sired in order to save humanity. But God does not hold this utilitarian view of humanity. Human beings are in fact the pinnacle of His creation with dominion over the Earth (Genesis 1:26), made in His image (1:27). We derive our dignity as humans not from our usefulness, but from the fact that our Heavenly Father first loved us into being (1 John 4:19) and knit us together in our mother’s wombs (Psalm 139:13). We are not merely products of conception geared solely toward continuing our species; we are universes unto ourselves, gifted with an immortal soul with limitless depth and meaning.

He writes, "This leads to the second critical error that Musk has made. Our Creator is a loving Father who is intimately concerned with the smallest details of our lives." Here's the explanation: "... In the same way, all men who become fathers are called to care for their children in the manner that God the Father cares for all His children. A good father intimately knows the unique personalities and attributes of his children so that he can more effectively care for their particular needs, thereby genuinely loving them. A father can only achieve this by spending as much quality time with his children as possible in his home."

And, the third error? As Hart writes, "Every child has only one father and one mother." He adds: "Inherent in this reality is that every mother deserves the father of her child to father her child exclusively with her so that the child will flourish and so she is not forced to become a single mom. Just the same, every child deserves to be loved by her married mother and father. Unfortunately, the Musk fatherhood model is a grave injustice to both the mother and the child."

So, for someone who is regarded as being highly intelligent, there is this flaw with regard to his parenting practices.  The article says: 

Musk often talks about the importance of reasoning based on first principles and sound logic. But in his model of fatherhood, he does not appear to take into account what social science data shows. The data in fact demonstrates that children from married intact families have lower rates of depression and anxiety, graduate from college at higher rates, earn more money, and enjoy a host of other benefits that children from unmarried or non-intact families do not enjoy. In other words, children thrive most when they are raised exclusively by their married father and mother.

So, for all the admiration going around for Elon Musk - and the anger, as well - he has embraced a very dangerous and ungodly viewpoint toward having children.  Children are not like electric cars, to be mass-produced for the furtherance of the human race and to inhabit other planets.  Musk is a futurist, at his core, and possesses some radical ideas on the human brain and embraces combining the human brain with technology to somehow create an amalgamation of man and machine. 

To me, it seems all too Margaret Sanger-ish.  Even though Musk claims to be on the road to becoming a Christian, which I would welcome, he certainly possesses a warped view of sexuality and humanity itself.  Sanger tried to create a super-race through reproduction.  Musk seems to be trying to create a super-race through technology.  Both have flaunted the laws of God. 

While we embrace the sanctity of life, we do so with a reverence for our Creator, not for what human beings can attempt to "create" or manufacture.  While population statistics as of late are quite concerning, this is not the way to change direction, especially when a more troubling agenda is at play.