Fox News reports that Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC) unveiled her “Green New Deal” yesterday. It amounts to a complete revamping of American life, massive government spending with no suggestions for how to pay for it, and the full implementation of socialism. What motivates her proposal are easily identifiable problems. Some exist and some don’t. But one that does exist is growing income inequality. We all agree that this is a problem. Her solution is socialism. However, solving a problem first necessitates the identification of the underlying cause. This she has not done.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
If we can get fathers to marry, and stay married to the mothers of their children, we can almost eliminate poverty in America.
In AOCs view “systemic racial, regional, social, environmental and economic injustices” are the cause of income inequality. In her view, it has nothing to do with moral or spiritual values. However, this is not the case. The actual cause of poverty is moral and spiritual. If that is true the gospel, not big government is the solution.
The number one correlation with poverty is single parenting. In 1960 five percent of live births were to single parents. Today over forty percent are. Wherever single parenting occurs there is systemic poverty. Wherever couples marry and stay married, poverty almost disappears. Therefore, this simple proposition follows. If we can get fathers to marry, and stay married to the mothers of their children, we can almost eliminate poverty in America.
But there is a problem: you cannot encourage marriage without honoring traditional sexual morality. The two go hand in hand. Social taboos against premarital sex, homosexual practice, same-sex marriage, divorce, and adultery promote early and permanent marriage. In the 1960s these were all in place. As a result, just under ninety percent of adults were married, divorce was infrequent, single parenting was rare, and the income gap was small.
Therefore, the solution to the growing gap between the rich and poor is not socialism. It is not big government. It is rolling back the sexual revolution, and only the gospel is sufficient for this. This is politically incorrect, and that is why AOC does not see it as the cause. Our culture has no interest in sexual purity. That is why AOC blames racism and sexism.
But, we are God’s people. We understand the problem and its solution. If the gospel is the solution, then revival is our great need. Pray that the Lord of the harvest will send out laborers into his harvest. Jonah preached to godless Nineveh, and the entire city put on sackcloth and ashes. America is no worse than idolatrous Nineveh. Maybe God will do the same for us today.
To learn more check out my new book, Marriage in Paradise, How to Have a Genesis Two Marriage in a Genesis Three World
