Jim Daly

What the Pope Said About Homosexuality

Pope Francis’ comments on homosexuality late last month made headlines around the world. During an impromptu 80-minute press conference with journalists, the Pope answered questions on a variety of issues, but the media has latched on to this one quote:

If a person is gay and seeks the Lord and has good will, who am I to judge that person?

The pope was summarizing his thoughts about celibate clergy who have unwanted same-sex attractions. That’s the quote that caused the media floodgates to open, with many news reports breathlessly hinting that the Catholic Church was changing its positions on the topic.

Continue ReadingTopics: Current Events Tags: homosexuality, news

Is This Why A-Rod Took Enhancing Drugs?

The suspension of thirteen Major League Baseball stars today is a sordid and layered story, to be sure. That the investigation has played out over the course of several years is just one indication of the many protagonists and antagonists (and a whole lot of money) in the mix. Simply put, it’s a mess.

But have you ever stopped to wonder why some athletes choose to cheat and others do not?

Sadly, dishonesty in professional sports is not a new phenomenon, especially in baseball.

Continue ReadingTopics: Current Events Tags: entertainment, pop culture

VIDEO: The Story of the Million Dollar Birth

Would you miss the birth of your child for the largest paycheck of your life?

American pro-golfer Hunter Mahan, 31, was leading the Canadian Open, a tournament with a prize of $1 million – and then he got a call. It turns out his pregnant wife, who wasn’t due to deliver their first baby for another three weeks, had suddenly gone into labor.

What did he do?

What would you do?

Immediately after receiving the call, Mahan packed his bags and withdrew from the tournament.

Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: marriage, parenting

How Can Parents Help Their Children After Divorce?

Earlier this week we aired a broadcast dealing with a difficult and sensitive issue: how can a man and woman who are divorced co-parent their children successfully?

It can be a challenging issue to navigate. We know God’s heart is for marriage and divorce is outside His intent. That’s why we encourage couples in crisis to do everything they can to work out differences through prayer, counseling and community support.

However, the reality remains that sometimes, divorce happens.

Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: divorce, kids, parenting

How Should Parents Define Happiness?

Scientists love to study how happy parents are (or aren’t). Year after year, news outlets report on the topic, touting studies that they say either find how unhappy parents are, or how much satisfaction and “positive emotion” children bring to their parents’ lives.

Here are some samples of the findings on this topic – as you’ll see, there’s a wide array of results.

A 2007 Pew report found children are still vital to adult happiness.
Fox News describe how “parents report significantly higher levels of depression than non-parents”
Research in the journal Psychological Science found that overall, “parents (and especially fathers) report relatively higher levels of happiness, positive emotion, and meaning in life than do non-parents.”
The Wall Street Journal reports “every additional child makes parents 1.3 percentage points less likely to be ‘very happy’”

Andrew Hess is one of our staff researchers, and he recently attempted to make sense of these findings.

Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: kids, marriage, parenting

Thoughts on Pastor Rick Warren’s Return to the Pulpit

By now you’ve heard that pastor and bestselling author Rick Warren returned to the pulpit this past Sunday for the first time since his son’s suicide in April.

Matthew Warren, 27, struggled with mental illness since childhood. According to the Warrens, Matthew received the best medical care and counseling available. He had good days and very bad ones, but it was unpredictable and naturally very difficult. In the midst of this decades-long ordeal, the Warrens led and built up a church congregation of over ten thousand people.

Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: kids, parenting, pastors

How Can Hospitality Help Share the Gospel?

Sometimes it’s the littlest things we do that speak the loudest.

Take my colleague, Glenn Stanton. Glenn heads up our family formation studies. He’s the quintessential researcher, citing studies on marriage and family, speaking at universities, and engaging with experts across the political and ideological spectrum.

A few months ago, Glenn invited Jonathan Rauch, a well-known advocate of gay marriage, to speak to the staff at Focus on the Family. This was a good time for people on two different sides of an important issue to meet, share their views, respectfully challenge each other’s assertions, and walk away better informed about the complexities that surround this issue.

Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: faith, friendship

What Made Actor Dustin Hoffman Cry?

A video of Dustin Hoffman has gone viral. In it, the acclaimed actor shares the real reason why he agreed to star in the 1982 hit, “Tootsie,” a film about a man who dressed up as a woman to get more work.

Turns out Hoffman wasn’t motivated by money or fame or some political interest. Rather, he was motivated by what he saw in his own heart.

As the film’s make-up team prepared Hoffman for the film, the actor realized he didn’t make for a very attractive woman.

Continue ReadingTopics: Current Events Tags: entertainment, news, pop culture

After Your Royal Baby Comes Home

It’s difficult to turn on the TV or visit online news sites without getting an update about the “royal baby” or seeing footage of the beaming parents introducing their son to the world. Joy and optimism are written across their faces. Like any new parents, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will undoubtedly spend many long moments gazing at their son and marveling at every perfect detail. Jean and I have so many fond memories of studying the perfect faces of Trent and Troy when they were first born.

Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: kids, parenting

Three Things to Remember Before Giving Advice to Your Spouse

The Wall Street Journal recently ran a rather provocative column on marriage and advice-giving, linking the practice to lower marital satisfaction rates. Here’s the crux of the findings:

In a series of six studies that followed 100 couples for the first seven years of marriage, researchers at the University of Iowa found that both husbands and wives feel lower marital satisfaction when they are given too much advice from a spouse, as opposed to too little.

Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: marriage, relationships