David Kinnaman, president of The Barna Group, has an interesting column in the latest edition of Ministry Today headlined "Moral Mavericks?" The subtitle: "Relationships and experiences—not absolute truth—are the moral compass for a new generation."

Based on analysis of interviews with 7,000 "busters," Kinnaman pointed out some disturbing findings about folks in their 20s and 30s.

Compared to their parents, busters were twice as likely to have viewed sexually explicit movies, 2.5 times more likely to have had a sexual encounter outside of marriage, and three times more likely to view sexually graphic content online.

More than two-thirds of busters say that cohabitation is morally acceptable, compared to half of older adults (which only goes to show the rampant biblical ignorance in our society. If you think I'm overstating the case, read Hebrews 13:4, Exodus 20:14 or 1 Thessalonians 4:3-6.)

These morally-lax attitudes span lifestyle choices as well. In the past month, busters were more likely than their elders to have used illegal drugs, gotten drunk, and downloaded or illegally traded music online.

For anyone who believes the Bible is the standard for determining the boundaries of acceptable behavior, it is distressing that only 30 percent of busters believe in moral absolutes. According to Kinnaman, nearly half of busters say ethics and morals are based on "what is right for the person."

Learning from their elders

Throughout history, people have lamented young people's lack of respect for societal norms and their elders, so I don't want to fall into that trap. As someone who fits into the older baby boomer slice of the demographic, I've always believed that if the elders are unhappy with the way young people act, the first question ought to be: "Who taught them?"

Divorce is rampant in our day, but we can go back decades to see how the seeds of modern marital break-ups were planted in the supposedly blissful days of the 1950s. Quick, think of a famous pastor or evangelist from the older generation whose marriage has dissolved. You won't have to strive too hard to come up with a name.

Or take news stories that have appeared in recent days, such as one in the Los Angeles Times with the headline "Haggard was no saint, fellow pastors determine." The story detailed a pattern of troubling behavior on the baby boomer pastor's part that went unchallenged, ranging from sordid conversations to improper relationships.

Then there was the item about former Tulsa pastor Lonnie Latham, age 60, who was acquitted of sexual solicitation Mar. 7 for allegedly offering to engage in a sexual act with an undercover male policeman.

Although the judge didn't issue any opinion in dismissing the case, Latham's attorney had argued the state's lewdness law was unconstitutional because of the 2003 Supreme Court ruling that said states couldn't ban private acts between consenting adults.

I first heard about that argument on the Air America radio network, where the host laughed with glee over a former opponent of gay rights laws using a pro-gay court ruling to justify dismissal of his case.

I could go on, but I think I've made my point: if older people expect younger people to listen to their professions of morality and the authority of God's Word, we better clean up our own act.

Positive lining in the cloud

To avoid ending on a sour note, I include Kinnaman's observation that his research leads him to believe that busters are more transparent about their struggles and don't pretend to have it together.

As he observes, what that means is that busters can be more open to a high priest who can sympathize with their weaknesses: "After all, God does His best work in broken people."

Right now it seems the Lord has plenty of candidates, regardless of age.