As my younger brother said when he shared this with me, NEENER!

Divorce is more common among conservative Christians and young people, according to a recent study.

University of Iowa sociology professor Jennifer Glass presented her study on skyrocketing divorce rates in regions highly populated with conservative Christians to an overflowing crowd in Burdine Hall on Friday.

“Politically and religiously conservative states, especially in the Deep South, exhibit higher divorce rates than politically and religiously liberal states in the Northeast and Midwest,” Glass wrote in her study.

Yes, and why?

She said the paradox can be explained by the accelerated transition into adulthood and early marriages that young conservative Protestants practice.

Factors that lead to high rates of divorce among Christians are the prohibition of sex before marriage leading to marriage at an earlier age and teachings against abortion and birth control, which lead to “shotgun weddings,” she said.

The average age of marriage for American women is 27, she said.
Young married couples may also experience financial problems because of lower degrees of education and increased unemployment, which are risk factors for divorce, she said.

“You’ve got a local religious culture that involves everyone — whether they share that religion or not — to behave in particular ways,” Glass said.

Ah, it even hurts the surrounding culture. Perhaps they should put warning signs on the lawns of conservative churches. “Living too close to this House of Worship may endanger your marriage, studies show.”

I guess wingnut groups like the National Organization for Marriage will commence with the mouth-shutting about “protecting marriage” and start cleaning up their own house? Haha, of course not!

To sum up: Neener.