Why doesn't it happen more often?

In the wake of the high school murders in Littleton, Colorado, lots of people are asking, "Why does this happen so often?" We pose the opposite question: "Why doesn't this happen more often?"

Certainly, the pressures that drove the two students to massacre their classmates exist beyond the borders of that Denver suburb. Millions of teens are ridiculed by their peers; millions of adolescents play violent video games; many young people explore the darker aspects of life, delving into subcultures loosely tied to Nazism or satanism. So why don't more of them snap?

The answer is that most of them have balance. Just like adults who are under emotional burdens and pressures of their own, these teenagers have relief valves: a trusted person to talk to, a sense of self-worth that has been in place since infancy and ties to positive values that keep them connected even as they explore the opposite.

One aspect of life that provides all of those balances is religion:

* Priests, women religious, Catholic school teachers, catechists and youth ministers are a cadre of adults who listen to young people and offer sound advice;

* The belief, instilled by parents and other adults, that a child is loved unconditionally by God offers a sense of dignity that cannot be easily rattled; and

* Being brought up in a home by parents who practice their religious values means those values permeate all of life, anchoring young people in a moral context that serves them well when circumstances turn difficult.

This means, of course, that it is incumbent on adults -- parents, teachers, counselors and others -- to practice what they preach, to listen as well as to talk to teens, and to perfect the skills of dealing with young people that will ensure their growing up as balanced people.

As America searches for solutions to Littleton from a menu that includes passing tighter gun control measures, setting up better school security and training people to recognize danger signals, we should all realize that the ultimate solution lies in our strengthening religion in families and in their communities.

(04-29-99)

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