As study after study has shown, divorce can have a devastating impact on children, which may include increased mental health issues, such as depression, guilt, social fear, developmental regression, anger and suicidal ideation; delinquency and impulsive behavior; poor academic performance; increased likelihood to engage in drug use and sexual activity; difficulty forming attachments and likelihood to leave the church as an adult. To learn more about these risks, see these studies:
- 13 Saddening Children of Divorce Statistics for 2022
- Key Statistics about Kids from Divorced Families
- Statistics: Children and Divorce
- Religious Parent’s Divorce May Cause Children to Leave the Church
- Understanding how divorce can affect children
- The Effects of Divorce on Children & How to Help them Cope
- The Impact of Divorce on Children
- People Who Experienced Parental Divorce as Children Have Lower ‘Love Hormone’ Levels than Those Who Did Not
To protect children from these risks, parents should make every reasonable effort to work together to preserve their marriages. This could include going through RW360’s foundational courses on relational wisdom and peacemaking. It could also include seeking pastoral or professional Christian counseling or Christian conciliation.
Although divorce should never be pursued casually or impulsively, in situations involving infidelity or severe abuse or neglect, divorce may be both biblically legitimate and in the best interest of the children. To learn more about biblical grounds for divorce, see Articles on Divorce and Remarriage. To learn how to apply peacemaking principles in situations involving abuse or neglect, see Peacemaking and Abuse.