Explainer: U.S. birth and fertility rates fall to record lows

A new provisional report from the Centers for Disease Control finds that the United States had the lowest number of births since 1979 and the lowest fertility rate in our nation’s history.

According to the report, the number of births for the United States in 2020 was 3,605,201, down 4% from 2019. This is the sixth consecutive year that the number of births has declined after an increase in 2014.

Editor's Note

At the ERLC, we are passionate about seeing women flourish and utilize the creative gifts in service to the kingdom. This is why I’m excited to let you know about our next digital event on May 13 focused on these very themes. Register now at no cost to attend the event and hear from Jen Wilkin, Katie McCoy, Missie Branch, and the ERLC’s Chelsea Sobolik.

This Week in Washington, D.C.

This week, President Biden signed an order raising the refugee admissions ceiling for the current fiscal year to 62,500 from its historically low level of 15,000.

Russell Moore, president of the ERLC, said in an Evangelical Immigration Table press release commending the Biden Administration’s decision that he was “thankful President Biden revised his decision on the refugee ceiling.”

President Biden’s decision to raise the refugee ceiling came only weeks after Moore and the Evangelical Immigration Table expressed dismay and disappointment in the Biden Administration's failure to follow through on their commitments. As Moore has said, “Rhetoric is no refuge for the persecuted.”

The ERLC will continue to work with our coalition partners and the executive branch to advance issues of concern to Southern Baptists and bear witness to policies pursued by the government that run contrary to biblical principles.

From The Public Square

What You Need to Read

Jared Kennedy with Conversations about gender should begin with humility: Helping parents navigate hard topics with their children

Beyond the uncomfortable emotions involved, navigating conversations about gender and sex with our children means exploring emotional, moral, personal, and theological matters — serious subjects. Most parents feel a lot of pressure to respond perfectly. We’re afraid if things go sideways and our children choose to reject our values and beliefs, it could be our fault for not handling the teachable moment well. It’s easy to feel paralyzed by what we should or shouldn’t say and do. If we’re honest, we feel desperate and ill equipped.

Alex Ward with Why reading classics can help us answer age-old questions: An interview with Karen Swallow Prior

We are wise to understand, then, that our limited understanding must be measured against the only reliable source of truth we have — God and his Word. We are our own unreliable narrators. But by God’s grace, we can see ourselves within the context of his story. Reading other people’s stories helps to realize our need to do so.

Rachel Lonas with Why it’s important to value neurodiversity in the Church: And three ways you can help

Within the body of Christ, where the dignity of all humans as image-bearers of our triune God is affirmed, such joyful celebration of God’s infinite creativity should be commonplace. So why does it feel like many of us have been waiting too long to hear the church speak to these issues in a meaningful way?

This Week at the ERLC

• Russell Moore joined President George W. Bush and Yuval Levin for a conversation about immigrants and the American future. You can watch a replay here. He was also quoted in Baptist Press commending the Biden administration for raising the refugee admissions cap.
   
• The ERLC Team joined the staff and volunteers of the Hope Resource center in Knoxville, Tennessee, for the dedication of two lifesaving ultrasound machines.
   
• Jason Thacker joined NRB Live at Lunch to discuss platform censorship, Section 230, and the power of social media platforms.

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