American Academy of Pediatrics Issues Warning against Spanking Children

The American Academy of Pediatrics has issued a strong policy statement claiming that the use of corporal punishment in the home is harmful. The group, which represents about 67,000 doctors, defines spanking as “noninjurious, openhanded hitting with the intention of modifying child behavior.” The group’s previous policy encouraged parents not to spank, but stopped short of calling it harmful. According to polls, the use of spanking in the U.S. has declined over the past two decades, but 70% of adults still have enough sense to agree that a “good, hard spanking is sometimes necessary to discipline a child” (2014 General Social Survey, cited from “Spanking Is Ineffective and Harmful, Pediatricians’ Group Says,” New York Times, Nov. 5, 2018). There are still 19 states in the U.S. that either allow spanking in schools or do not have specific rules prohibiting it. God’s Word is unequivocal on the issue. “He that spareth his rod hateth his son: but he that loveth him chasteneth him betimes” (Proverbs 13:24). “Foolishness is bound in the heart of a child; but the rod of correction shall drive it far from him” (Proverbs 22:15). “The rod and reproof give wisdom: but a child left to himself bringeth his mother to shame” (Proverbs 29:15). Note that the Bible is enjoining the rod of loving correction, not the rod of hateful abuse.

​(Friday Church News Notes, November 23, 2018, www.wayoflife.org, fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143)

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