eChristianity
Friday, February 26, 2021
  • Home
  • News
  • Politics
  • Christian Life
  • Ministry
  • Vatican News
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
  • Politics
  • Christian Life
  • Ministry
  • Vatican News
eChristianity
No Result
View All Result

Minn. pastor says its OK for parents to give kids a ‘good spanking’ for discipline

September 8, 2020
in Christian Life
0
0
SHARES
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Read More

Recommended Post

Ex-porn star reveals how the Bible transformed her after her boyfriend was murdered in front of her

LPGA Tour caddie Taneka Mackey clings to faith through MS diagnosis

Apologist Ken Ham’s response to atheists, skeptics who ‘scoff’ at Noah’s Ark

By Michael Gryboski, Christian Post Reporter Follow

image

A column published last Saturday on theologian John Piper’s Christian theology website, Desiring God, by a Minnesota pastor argues that a “good spanking” should be an option for parents who want to discipline their children.

Sam Crabtree, a small group pastor at Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis who authored the 2019 book Parenting with Loving Correction, wrote in response to critics who oppose spanking and other forms of corporal punishment as methods of discipline for children.

While describing spanking opponents as “well-intended” with “valid concerns,” Crabtree argued that there is such a thing as “good spanking” when parents opt to discipline their children.

“… [M]any who oppose spanking sweep all corporal punishment into a single bucket without distinguishing between wise and foolish parental correction, as if factors like timing, dose, implement, and advance instruction make no difference,” wrote Crabtree, a former public school teacher and who serves as chairman of the board of the Bethlehem College & Seminary.

“Just as bad preaching doesn’t disqualify all pulpits, and bad writing doesn’t mean we should banish publishing, and a bad haircut doesn’t mean you should go Nazarite, so bad spanking doesn’t mean there isn’t good spanking.”

Crabtree went on to contend that a “good spanking” involves applying “a predetermined amount of physical pain in direct response to a child’s defiance.”

“Defiance starts in the heart and works its way out into behaviors of the body (tantrums, disobedience, mouthiness, rebellious facial expressions),” he explained.

“[S]o spanking works in the opposite direction: it moves toward the heart by first gaining the attention of the body, commonly via the well-padded buttocks.”

Get The Christian Post newsletter in your inbox.

The top 7 stories of the day, curated just for you!
Delivery: Weekdays

Crabtree then laid out “six principles of good spanking.”

Those principles include understanding “that the perfect loving Father uses the rod,” parents modeling correction through confessing and repentance, not overusing spanking for discipline, applying corporal punishment with “utmost consistency” and limiting the severity of the punishment such as not breaking skin or hitting eyes.

The sixth principle, he explained, is recognizing that spanking “must be accompanied by other tools of parenting.”

“Wise parents don’t start with spanking, but with other measures: rewards, interruptions, ‘the look’ of disapproval, loss of privileges, restitution,” he explained.

The use of corporal punishment when disciplining children has been a source of controversy in recent times, with some countries considering it tantamount to abuse and banning the practice.

In 2018, the health journal BMJ published a study that analyzed data from 88 countries. The study concluded that nations that banned spanking had lower rates of youth violence.

“Whether bans precipitated changes in child discipline or reflected a social milieu that inhibits youth violence remains unclear due to the study design and data limitations,” concluded the study. “However, these results support the hypothesis that societies that prohibit the use of corporal punishment are less violent for youth to grow up in than societies that have not.”

In a 2016 piece for Scientific American, contributing editor Melinda Wenner Moyer wrote that despite multiple studies indicating that spanking is harmful, “some researchers remain skeptical.”

“Studies suggest, for instance, that the effects of spanking can differ depending on the circumstances,” she explained.

“Two studies have found no associations between spanking and mental health problems among kids who were spanked less than once or twice a month; other research has shown that spanking has much less of a negative effect on preschool kids than on infants and adolescents.”

Moyer added that when it comes to the question of corporal punishment for children, there was a “chicken-or-egg question” tied to it: “Are kids spanked because they act out, or do they act out because they are spanked — or both?”

Danny Huerta of the prominent Colorado-based national Christian ministry Focus on the Family argued in a 2019 piece that child spanking could be either “appropriate” or “inappropriate.”

“Used correctly and infrequently as part of a comprehensive parenting toolkit, a spank can be that last resort discipline method you use when you need to create attention and a clear understanding why the behavior should never happen again,” he wrote.

“Used inappropriately, spanking can be dangerous. I’ve found some parents who use spanking as their main discipline tool and, many times, use it when they’re frustrated or angry. I’ve also noticed some parents spank and move on, skipping the important teaching element.”

Follow Michael Gryboski on Twitter or Facebook

Previous Post

Postcard from Plymouth: The Mayflower at 400 celebratory year adapts

Next Post

Abortion survivor’s birth mom opens up: ‘We weren’t allowed to shame the family’

Related Posts

Ex-porn star reveals how the Bible transformed her after her boyfriend was murdered in front of her

Ex-porn star reveals how the Bible transformed her after her boyfriend was murdered in front of her

February 23, 2021
LPGA Tour caddie Taneka Mackey clings to faith through MS diagnosis

LPGA Tour caddie Taneka Mackey clings to faith through MS diagnosis

February 22, 2021
Apologist Ken Ham’s response to atheists, skeptics who ‘scoff’ at Noah’s Ark

Apologist Ken Ham’s response to atheists, skeptics who ‘scoff’ at Noah’s Ark

February 19, 2021
Dating coach offers tips, advice for Christians looking for love this season

Dating coach offers tips, advice for Christians looking for love this season

February 12, 2021
Postcard from America’s finest city

Postcard from America’s finest city

February 7, 2021
‘America’s Next Top Model’ star urges women to honor God with their time on social media

‘America’s Next Top Model’ star urges women to honor God with their time on social media

February 5, 2021
Next Post

Abortion survivor's birth mom opens up: 'We weren't allowed to shame the family'

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Top Stories

On late-night TV and bestseller lists, new books on prayer resonating with readers

On late-night TV and bestseller lists, new books on prayer resonating with readers

February 26, 2021
Rick Warren pays tribute to Celebrate Recovery co-founder John Baker

Rick Warren pays tribute to Celebrate Recovery co-founder John Baker

February 26, 2021
Photos of the Week: Purim in Israel, Magh Mela in India

Photos of the Week: Purim in Israel, Magh Mela in India

February 26, 2021
eChristianity

© 2020 eChristianity News

Navigate Site

  • Home
  • News
  • Politics
  • Christian Life
  • Ministry
  • Vatican News

Follow Us

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
  • Politics
  • Christian Life
  • Ministry
  • Vatican News

© 2020 eChristianity News