The problem of dysfunctional families and dysfunctional societies could be viewed as a “chicken or the egg” conundrum as to which one develops functionality or dysfunctionality in the other. In reality, it is neither. It is my estimation that there never has been a self-sustaining society that influenced the family to also become self-sustaining; and the family has never been a truly self-sustaining social institution to influence societies to also become self-sustaining.

In the language of social sustainability, there is a symbiotic relationship between families and societies. Sometimes this is a positive relationship and sometimes it is forgotten and left by the wayside of social change.

The intention in this article ⁴ is to present and provide the means for families to become the primary influence for societies to evolve and become socially sustainable.

The crux of the problem is that communities, societies, civilizations, and all of their respective social institutions came into existence without a conscious intention for their continuing existence and what they were to become. As history has so clearly shown, societies and nations came into existence, bloomed, crested, declined, collapsed, and disappeared into the strata of archeological detritus.⁵ To take the initiative of consciously improving the functioning of families as socially sustainable and capable of contributing to the sustainability of community and society would be a first for all time.

Yes, it will take generations to prove the potential of socially sustainable families to effect major culture changes in societies. However, not taking any initiative would provide the assurance that our communities, societies, and nations will fail as assuredly as all have failed in the past, leaving generations in desperation, when we could have given them a better condition for their lives.

What is proposed is the establishment of Clinic programs in Christian churches to teach parents how to use positive and constructive “early life influences” to give their child huge advantages to survive and thrive as they grow into adulthood. Though most parents want the best for their children, it is rare for parents to know what the child can rely upon in later years to serve them well when they are on their own.

A new social institution. To fulfill the possibility of democratic societies becoming stable, peaceful, and eventually socially sustainable, a new social institution is needed that enculturates each new generation with the best practices of conscious and sustainable child rearing and parenting. Though one generation may pass these skills on to their children, there is no assurance that those best practices will be permanently embedded in their DNA. Because these skills are not permanently hereditary, they will need to be intentionally refreshed in each new generation.

Epigenesis. The child care and parenting programs of Clinics would provide parents-to-be, parents, and grandparents with positive child care influences, i.e. skills, that will imprint their child’s DNA, (biologic epigenesis) giving him or her the capability to develop a positive attitude toward life and an anticipation of successes in their life. The imprint is made on the child’s DNA through the instructions of parents and others given to young children in the form of advice, direction, guidance, counsel, instructions, exhortations, and admonishments to the child, and particularly when it is done several times over the course of their lives.

Transgenerational. The epigenetic DNA imprint created in one generation will carry over to the next generation, but begins to fade with succeeding generations. To aid each generation those skills and the DNA imprint must be “refreshed” with each new generation requiring Clinics to become a permanent institution in every community, much like schools of public education. The intentions are multiple, but essentially churches with Clinics would provide a positive, multi-generational benefit to new families, communities, and societies.

After numerous generations, it is quite possible that continued imprinting with these best practices would make the imprint more and more indelible. The long term benefit would be the creation of a tremendously supportive social environment for individuals, families, and whole societies. The alternative is a continuation of what we are seeing across America, social dysfunction in more social strata of our society from the most indigent to the most affluent. The alternative is to do nothing and let the worst practices of our societies — criminality, violence, and general disregard for the value of others — to continue to embed deeper and deeper into our democratic culture and the DNA of our children.

Knowing what we know about the history of societies, our own society, and the obvious signs of the moral and social decay of our society, we are now witnessing the societal decline that always anticipates social collapse. Knowing what we know about the incredible adaptability and durability of our species, and the values that have supported our species’ long existence, we must look at our options, make a choice, invoke a decision, and implement the best practices of our social existence — and transcend the long history of all failed societies. It is doable.

Sources of Child Rearing Wisdom. If we are to create a culture change that provides for the safe social evolution of democratic societies, humbly it must begin within families and the enculturation of each new generation. Discovering the sources of best practices of child rearing and parenthood would go far to help produce children who grow into adulthood to become socially responsible and competent citizens, innovators, leaders, and decision-makers.

Every culture has a set of best practices that while being cultural are also universally applicable in all cultures. Raising children who are peaceful, socially responsible, and reasonably contented with life is not a miracle but the result of conscientiously applying the best practices of child rearing and parenting. Children who are raised with the best practices of parenting and child rearing are far better prepared to integrate the tenets of spiritual enlightenment than children raised in dysfunctional families.

Among every generation of children around the world there are many who have become well adjusted, functionally social, contented, and curious from having been raised by caring and loving parents who somehow knew how to raise their children that way. I truly believe that the wisdom of sound child rearing and parenting practices already exists but simply needs to be collected, organized, collated, and made

assertively available in each local community. Discovering what Jesus had to say about parenting, child rearing, family dynamics, and growing up with a God consciousness would be highly useful bridge between the Clinic program and the religion OF Jesus. Discovering and implementing best practices from all sources would have a profound effect on the civility of our communities and societies, our politics and government operation, as well as financial and economic equity.

Perhaps the most convincing evidence of successful child rearing and parenting skills is in the lives of well adjusted adults in hundreds of cultures around the world waiting to be revealed in field research and a survey of social science research studies. A search for that wisdom would include almost two centuries of social science research, including the work of Margaret Meade whose early research of indigenous cultures could guide our search today.

Though there already exist many parenting and child rearing books, manuals, and articles, none were based on the seven values that have sustained our species. Discovering and validating the best practices of child rearing using those values would result in a universal parenting guide that would be applicable to all people of all races, ethnic groups, cultures, religions, and political preferences, without the inherent bias and self-interest of those groups. A universal, multi-cultural guide of those “best practices” would help new parents in all nations raise their children without guessing or assuming they already knew.

⁴ Ibid, Epigenetics and Clinics for Sustainable Families — Catalysts for Transgenerational Culture Change.

5 Diamond, Jared 2005 Collapse – How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed
Viking, Penguin Group, New York
Diamond, Jared 1997 Guns, Germs, and Steel — The Fates of Human Societies
W. W. Norton Co., New York