Off Topic — HabitableZone

Off Topic » in reply to Re: Hot topic after hot topic, eh . . . ?

Historical perspective
Larry J — (archived)

Back in the days when marriages between 13 year olds (or an older man to a 13-15 year old girl) were common, at least in this country, the average expected lifespan was much less than today. When the average lifespan was perhaps 41 years, a lot of people didn't wait until they were in their 20s to wed.

Not only that but a lot of women, especially very young mothers, died in childbirth. Quite a bit of the maternal death rate was due to poor medical care but I don't doubt that complications from girls with immature bodies giving birth also killed quite a few mothers. Remember, this was in the days when a Caesarian was seldom a survivable procedure.

There may be another factor that we have to consider about those days gone by. Back then, most of the people lived on farms. They grew up working hard from childhood. They weren't as immature as so many of today's "street wise" kids even at age 13. Even the Jewish ceremony of Bar Mitzvah bears this out. During a religious Bar Mitzvah (as compared to so many of today's party ceremonies), a Jewish boy became a man at age 13 when he accepts responsibility for his sins. This is a centuries old tradition but it illustrates a point I've been making for years - no one is truly an adult until he accepts full responsibility for himself and his actions.

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