Religion is good for kids... if it is not a source of parental conflict

Both the Old Testament and the New Testament agree on something. It recommends that believers not marry unbelievers. Why? A new study suggests it is because while religious children tend to be "better behaved and adjusted than other children", the benefits are completely lost if the parents are constantly arguing about their religion.

The kids whose parents regularly attended religious services—especially when both parents did so frequently—and talked with their kids about religion were rated by both parents and teachers as having better self-control, social skills and approaches to learning than kids with non-religious parents.

But when parents argued frequently about religion, the children were more likely to have problems. “Religion can hurt if faith is a source of conflict or tension in the family,” Bartkowski noted.

Those who believe love conquers all should keep in mind that there are practical concerns to a marriage... especially if you plan to bring children into that marriage by birth or adoption.